Bath City have made it four wins in a row following a comprehensive 3-0 victory away at league leaders Plymouth Parkway in the FA Trophy. Goals from the recalled Matt Bowman, Reuben Reid, and Enzio Boldewijn propelled the Romans into the 1st Round, simultaneously ending Parkway’s eight-match winning streak across all competitions.
This triumph marked Bath City’s best run in three years, with four consecutive victories spanning both league and cup fixtures. Notably, it was the club’s first outright win in the FA Trophy since December 2023.
Manager Scott Bartlett, marking six months in charge, made strategic selections by resting Joe Raynes and Donovan Wilson completely, while Pedro Elawar, who impressed in the midweek win over Taunton, was named among the substitutes.
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The match got off to a shaky start for hosts Plymouth Parkway when goalkeeper Aaron Dearing under-hit a backpass just two minutes in, gifting Harry Parsons a chance from 35 yards, which he lifted over the bar. Parkway threatened with a free-kick from Ethan Wright, nodded over by Ryan Brett, and Scott Wilson nearly nutmegged Dearing in a lively opening period. Jordan Tillson’s cross then rattled the crossbar, adding to the home side’s nervy moments.
Bath City continued to exert pressure with Bowman narrowly missing a strike from 20 yards. On the half-hour mark, Reid’s chest controlled pass found Wilson, whose low shot was saved by Dearing following a defensive error by former Roman Jack Matthews.
The breakthrough came from a well-delivered corner by Ollie Chamberlain which Dearing failed to handle, allowing Bowman to head home his first goal of the season. However, Dearing’s misfortune continued when a simple backpass from Brett was mishandled, enabling Reid to capitalise and double Bath City’s lead with an easy finish – his second goal against Plymouth Parkway.
Just before half-time, Bath City had a penalty claim dismissed when Reid went down under Dearing’s challenge. Referee Jordan Lee judged the striker to have dived and subsequently booked him, despite having awarded a goalkeeper foul penalty for a similar incident two games earlier.
Plymouth Parkway made a substitution at the break with Rio Garside replacing Callum Hall. Garside played a key role in their early second-half attack, setting up Henry Donovan whose shot was bravely blocked by Harrison Minturn.
The Romans sealed their victory within two minutes of the restart. Enzio Boldewijn timed his run expertly to evade defenders before firing past Dearing to notch his first goal for the club. This goal effectively secured the win, allowing Bath City to manage the remainder of the game comfortably amid upcoming league and FA Cup commitments.
Manager Bartlett gave opportunities to his bench, bringing on Pedro Elawar and defender Jack Batten as a forward replacement for Reid. Plymouth Parkway’s top scorer Rocky Neal was introduced late but was unable to find a way past Minturn, who forced Neal’s effort narrowly wide.
Notably, Parkway failed to score for the first time this season and Bath City secured their first away clean sheet of 2026 in what was arguably their best road performance of the calendar year.
Despite the positive result, Bartlett expressed a desire for further improvement. “We’re still a long way from where I want us to be,” he said. “We haven’t cracked it yet, but all the signs are there that the lads want to get to that stage. They’ve worked exceptionally hard to keep the ball out of the net and we’ve scored three good goals. That bodes well. We had some real flashes of quality in the game.”
Bartlett was particularly pleased with Matt Bowman’s performance, describing it as the midfielder’s best in some time. “He’s been patient and working really hard. That was certainly his most complete performance. Everyone is really pleased for him. He got around the pitch a lot and drives forward. With that much legs and energy, you see the best out of players like him after an hour or so. I thought from back to front everyone was a seven or eight out of ten.”