BY OSCAR PICK

The Beavers secured three wins in a row and a first away clean sheet with a 0-1 result against second placed Taunton in front of 843 vocal fans. 

It was a dream start at Wordsworth Drive for Hampton, as Mason Bloomfield tapped in a well-crafted goal that involved some high pressing from Jordan Thomas. After picking up the ball on the right-hand side of the goal, Jake Gray fizzed it across the box for Bloomfield to give Hampton a 0-1 lead in the first minute of the match

The second big chance involved Gray once again who, this time facing the goal with the ball at his feet, had a shot from outside the box that was dealt with comfortably by Dan Lavercombe.

Appeals for a handball were made after Ollie Chamberlain crossed the ball towards the edge of the box only for his teammates shot to be blocked by a sturdy Hampton defence. 

Dan Wishart, having found himself in a constant battle with Chamberlain, struggled to catch-up with the speedy winger who cut inside to force a sensational save from Adam Desbois.

Despite a string of efforts towards the end of the half, mostly from Chamberlain, Taunton were unable to trouble the centreback pairing of Luis Fernandez and Dean Inman, as both of whom maintained a tight backline to remain 0-1 up. 

As the second half got underway, Bloomfield clashed heads with a Taunton defender in an areal 50-50. The goalscorer then stayed down for a considerable amount of time before getting subbed off for Alfy Whittingham 

In an Instant impact, Whittingham picked the ball up on the byline and delivered a cross in for Ben Seymour - a new strike partnership linking up following Bloomfield’s injury. 

Then, as some of Taunton’s chances began to materialise, Desbois made his second eye-catching save of the match; visibly playing with confidence after his highlight-reel penalty stop against Dartford. 

With the more clear-cut chances coming from Hampton, Seymour found himself through on goal to force a quick hand from Lavercombe at his near post and Gray, having arrived for the followup, dragged his shot wide from a mid-distance effort.  

The match did not end without trepidation, however, as 10-added minutes felt like a lifetime. But the beavers saw out the game with composure and headed back to the Bev with their heads held high.