ST BLAZEY boss Dan Hart felt his players produced a number of ‘outstanding performances’ as the Green and Blacks saw off Tavistock 2-0 in last night’s FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round replay at Blaise Park.

The two had only met four days earlier where neither team could find a breakthrough, but after the Devonians were the better side in the first half, Blazey came on strong after the restart and won it thanks to Kai Burrell and a superb free-kick from Jack Calver.

Tavistock dominated the opening 45 minutes but rarely troubled home stopper Kyle Moore, while Blazey weren’t at it and were perhaps fortunate to get through unscathed.

However, Hart got a response from his side and they took the lead in fortuitous circumstances on 50 minutes. A long ball forward wasn’t dealt with by keeper Dan Holman, allowing striker Burrell to run clear and smash a shot into an empty net.

St Blazey, who saw a superb display in midfield from man-of-the-match Tallan Mitchell, played with a real swagger from then onwards and created multiple chances. However, they had to wait for the second, but it was worth it as Calver curled a 25-yard free-kick in off the post with 18 minutes of normal time remaining.

They then saw off the rest of the game with relative ease as they set up a home tie with Southern League Division One South outfit Barnstaple Town on Saturday, August 22 (3pm).

Hart admitted his side weren’t at the races early on, but praised their turnaround.

He said: “We failed in the first half to continue building on the momentum gained when the first tie ended at the weekend. I just felt we looked a bit slow to things, which we addressed at half-time, perhaps a little fortunate to be level at that time.

“However, that second half was a clear step up in the levels that we’ve showed so far in this campaign. We looked aggressive, showed quality and we were hurting them every time we went forward in the game.

“There were some outstanding performances and I felt that the second half showed the continued growth our whole squad is making, raising the levels and the standards of what is expected at this football club.”

While advancing in the FA Cup is a bonus, Blazey will be aiming for a decent run in the FA Vase.

Hart continued: “Onto Saturday now in a FA Vase team against a club I know well in Launceston AFC. I watched them in midweek and I thought they were very impressive. They are young and fresh and well coached, so we will have to be right at it to progress through.”

ST BLAZEY: Kyle Moore; Will Tinsley (capt), Jordan Bentley, Tom Cavanagh, Jack Calver; Ben Fowles, Aaron Bentley, Tallan Mitchell; Cam Hutchison, Kai Burrell, Olly Redd. Subs: Mac Dewsnap (gk), Todd Hanrahan, Joe Cook, Sam Clifton, Harry Blows, Hayden Black.

Attendance: 180.

Referee: James Long.

Blazey man-of-the-match: Tallan Mitchell.