Last week 142 people saw FC Clacton beat Wroxham 1-0. Yesterday around 20 FC Clacton supporters saw them lose to Woodbridge 2-0. I cannot begin to explain to the remaining 120 or so people who didn’t see yesterday’s game how a team that showed so many tremendous attributes in the victory over Wroxham could just a week later be so bereft of all of the same qualities in subsiding in such a lamentable fashion. This is to take nothing away from Woodbridge – on a greasy pitch they passed the ball around in neat triangles, played with more zip and belief both on and off the ball and 2-0 was the very least that they deserved from their afternoon but Clacton were frankly dire.

A quiet opening twenty minutes had almost passed, with little action of note save one header over the bar from the towering Jay Hubbard and a flurry of Clacton corners against the run of play, when Woodbridge took the lead. Tom Trevivian picked the ball up just over twenty five yards out and took advantage of an unfortunate slip from Joe Martin which left the defender doing the splits and gave the striker the chance to advance and place a lovely effort past Ed Wootten’s despairing dive to his left and into the corner of the net.

Clacton did manage a long range effort from Karl Andrade that was comfortably saved but the tide was still very much with Woodbridge as they dominated the midfield areas and kept the ball with neat, simple passes, although their final ball let them down on a number of occasions. They did almost take advantage of a mix up as Clacton got themselves in a terrible pickle in their own area but Kyelan Marvell was able to retrieve his own error and block Trevivian’s effort.

It was a relief for Clacton to get to half time a goal behind and, to their credit, they did start the second half more brightly, although that is much like saying that after having Michael Winner as a house guest that Noel Edmonds turning up on your doorstep would be an improvement.

Three minutes after half time Clacton won a free kick just outside the area and Matt Waters fired just a fraction wide. Then Woodbridge had the ball in the net but were denied but a mystifying offside decision that left even the FCC supporters confused.

However just as Clacton were looking like making a fight of it Woodbridge doubled their lead shortly before the hour mark as the ball was not cleared and Hubbard drilled home on the turn from the edge of the area.

With a quarter of the match remaining James Dunkley’s header from a free kick nearly deceived Tom Sills but the keeper just got back to tip wide but in truth that was about as close as Clacton came to a goal. It could have been even worse as Alicion Blake got down the left and was allowed to get to the byline and then cut in along it meeting scant resistance until his effort was blocked by Wootten at the near post.

Wootten saved well with his feet from sub Ben Seaman and Hubbard stretched to volley into the side netting from a left wing cross late on but by then Clacton were a well beaten side and the Woodpeckers deservedly registered all three points.