Following poor results in their two most recent outings Paul Halsey demanded improvement from his players in a pre-match dressing room session and he got it. However, it wasn’t all about tongue lashings as Halsey also changed the line-up. Liam Dulson was moved out to the left, Taufee Skandari given the number ten shirt and Liam Hope recalled as striker for his first start in seven games. It clearly worked as these three shared seven goals between them plus a number of assists.

It almost paid off in the first minute but Skandari delayed his shot from in front of goal for just too long and the ball was cleared. There wasn’t long to wait though and on nine minutes Skandari’s shot was pushed away by Wantage keeper Kacper Kowalczyk only as far as Hope who was on it and shooting home for the lead before the visiting defence could react.

Ware continued to play good passing football and had their reward on the quarter hour. Hope turned provider and laid the ball back to Albert Adu whose side foot from distance found the net.

If it had felt a little too easy there was a warning from a skilful Wantage side on 23 minutes when a break away ball was played across the face of the Ware goal and, with the defence beaten, Shaquille Ishmael was waiting alone at the far post for a simple tap in.

There was no mood for capitulation however and within a couple of minutes Ware had reasserted a two goal lead. Hope was again involved as he played the ball back to Skandari whose cross into the box was headed home by Dulson.

It was 4-1 shortly before the break when Dulson chased down a wide ball before crossing to Skandari. This time the number ten chose his moment and aim perfectly, sending the ball in off Kowalczyk’s left post.

Fears that the game was as good as settled and that it would peter out into a half hearted affair were washed away just two minutes after the break. Dulson’s stinging shot from wide on the Ware left was too hot to handle for Kowalczyk and once again Hope was hovering and hoovering up the spilt ball to chip it beyond the prone keeper for 5-1. It was his 50th goal for Ware in all matches.

In what was a game full of action Wantage weren’t about to throw in the towel and Tyriq Hunte’s snap shot demanded a good save from Brad Robinson. The keeper was in action again as Ishmael drew another good save from him, tipping a fierce shot onto the cross bar and away for a corner.

But Ware weren’t to be denied and just a minute later Skandari and Josh Williams combined to put a ball across the Wantage area. It was cleared but only as far as Dulson who hammered it home from a difficult angle.

By now Ware were warming to their task and chances were coming from different players and places on the pitch. Adu rescued a ball in midfield and drove down the Ware left before centring to Skandari whose first time shot found the roof of the net with Kowalczyk grasping at air.

Dulson then smacked a goal post with a shot, the sound of which reverberated around the ground before Josh Williams got in on the act with two goals in as many minutes. First, running on to a through ball with only the keeper to beat he blasted home goal eight and then, after a delicate touch from Hope released him into the Wantage area, he scored in almost identical fashion.

It was probably fitting that Dulson should have the last word as he brought the ball from wide on the left and through the Wantage defence to complete his first hat trick for the club by blasting the ball home in what has become his no-nonsense style.

Both sides contributed to an entertaining game because neither slackened their effort throughout. Wantage paid the penalty perhaps of not adapting to Ware’s all action game and just gave them too much time and space. As a result Blues claimed their biggest win since the 12-1 demolition of Cuffley in 2007’s Roy Bailey Memorial Trophy meeting and their best league win since the Spartan League match at Bletchley on October 9th 1954, incidentally by the same score.

Ware: Brad Robinson, Marcus Milner, Chris Arthur, Tom Bruno (James Mulley 73mins), Louis Rose, Dave Kendall, Josh Williams, Albert Adu (William Dupray 78mins), Liam Hope, Taufee Skandari (Rechan Esprit 78mins), Liam Dulson. Unused subs: Pat Adamson, Michael Bardle.