For much of the 2025/26 season our 65s squad has been top of the table and dreaming about being Dorset Walking Football League Champions. The last two rounds of league fixtures have put us on the back foot though, and now we need results elsewhere to go our way as well as picking up points.
Ideally we’d like be masters of our own destiny, but that won’t be the case at the final league tournament of the season in April. This review looks at the last two league rounds from February and March, and looks at that last day of fixtures.
Tournament Details
🏅 65s League Rounds Four & Five
🗓️ 18 February and 18 March 2026
🏟️ Littledown Centre, Bournemouth
Matchday Squad – Round 4
David Bacall 🧤🧢 | Andy Wilson | Clive Robinson | Ed Perkins | Paul Kybert | Peter Cherryman | Mark Ciano | Andy Madden | Terry Benson | Merv Young
Matchday Squad – Round 5
David Bacall 🧤🧢 | Clive Robinson | Ed Perkins | Glen Goodwin | Paul Kybert | Peter Cherryman | Peter Kane | Terry Benson | Merv Young | Karl Shaw
DSWFC Tournament Reports
At Christmas we were top of the tree, but since the turn of the year things haven’t gone quite so well. League Round Three in January was pretty successful, with the team collecting 9 points from four matches. At that point, we were still top of the league, but the gap to second had closed. Rounds Four and Five though, have done the damage and seen us slip to second spot.
League Round Four
Our opening match of Round Four was against fellow title challengers, Eastleigh. Having not scored against them in the previous two meetings this season, it was no surprise to lose once more, this time to a single goal. That result dropped us from top to third place as Bournemouth Reds collected points early in the day, and also leapfrogged us.
Braces in the next match for both Ed Perkins (with his first goals of the season) and top scorer Merv Young, gave us a healthy 4-0 victory over Bournemouth Whites. A good result for confidence and goal difference.
After that result, all three top teams (Bournemouth Reds, Eastleigh and us) all had 31 points from 14 matches! It’s that close, our goal difference could come in to play at the end of the season.
Our final two matches of the day were both against Weymouth sides, and both ended in 1-0 victories. The first was against The Blues, with Andy Wilson scoring his fifth of the season, while The Clarets were seen off after a Merv Young penalty conversion – his eighth goal of the season.
| Opponents | Result | Score | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastleigh | Lost | 0-1 | |
| B’mouth Whites | Won | 4-0 | Ed Perkins x2, Merv Young x2 |
| Weymouth Blues | Won | 1-0 | Andy Wilson |
| Weymouth Clarets | Won | 1-0 | Merv Young |
League Round Five
Our first opponents of the day, Bournemouth Reds, would end the day just one point behind us after collecting 10 points from their four matches, including a goalless draw with top-of-the-table Eastleigh. Our tight 0-1 defeat at the hands of The Cherries started the day off well for them.
Next up for us were Dorchester, a side we’d beaten 3-0 and 1-0 earlier in the season. On this occasion we conceded a goal, but scored two of our own through Peter Kane and Glen Goodwin to secure a 2-1 win.
Then came the crunch match against Eastleigh. A draw would have been good enough to remain top of the table, but on this occasion, after a really competitive game, we suffered our second 0-1 defeat of the day, and Eastleigh were top.
The day finished with a win, beating a struggling Bournemouth Whites 3-1. Peter Kane scored his fourth and fifth goals of the season, while Ed scored his third.
Heads up guys – a valiant effort by all given the availability and injuries. But great effort all round. Obviously we came up against a full Eastleigh squad and some interesting refereeing didn’t do us any favours, but all-in-all, we’re still in with a shout.”
Terry Benson, DSWFC 65s Manager
| Opponents | Result | Score | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|
| B’mouth Reds | Lost | 0-1 | |
| Dorchester | Won | 2-1 | Peter Kane, Glen Goodwin |
| Eastleigh | Lost | 0-1 | |
| B’mouth Whites | Won | 3-1 | Peter Kane x2, Ed Perkins |
DSWFC Season Player Stats
Here you can see the DSWFC 65s tournament appearances and goals for the season to date.
| Player | Tournaments | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Bacall, Dave | 5 | – |
| Cherryman, Peter | 5 | 0 |
| Ciano, Mark | 2 | 0 |
| Perkins, Ed | 2 | 0 |
| Goodwin, Glen | 4 | 3 |
| Kane, Peter | 3 | 5 |
| Kybert, Paul | 4 | 0 |
| Madden, Andy | 3 | 2 |
| Martin, Jonathan | 2 | 0 |
| Perkins, Ed | 3 | 3 |
| Robinson, Clive | 4 | 0 |
| Shaw, Karl | 1 | 0 |
| Wilson, Andy | 4 | 5 |
| Young, Merv | 4 | 8 |
League Overview
Next month, in the final league round of the season, each team will play four matches. Eastleigh sit top on 45 points, with Dexter Sports two points behind on 43, and Bournemouth Reds just one point further back on 42. So that’s just three points covering the top three teams.
Mathematically Weymouth Clarets are also still in with a shout. Bearing in mind The Clarets play all three teams above them – it might not be such a stretch of the imagination to make up the six point gap!
Title contenders remaining fixtures
- Eastleigh – Dorchester, Weymouth Clarets, Bournemouth Whites, Weymouth Blue
- Dexter Sports – Weymouth Blue, Weymouth Clarets, Bournemouth Reds, Dorchester
- Bournemouth Reds – Bournemouth Whites, Weymouth Blue, Dexter Sports, Weymouth Claret
- Weymouth Clarets – Eastleigh, Dexter Sports, Bournemouth Whites, Bournemouth Reds
Why not take a look at the league tables, including all results and history for the 50s, 60s and 65s.
Future dates
The final round of the 65s Dorset Walking Football League will be on Wednesday 22 April at The Littledown Sports Centre in Bournemouth. Check with your club nearer the time before making your journey though!
Get in touch
The physical and mental health benefits of regular exercise are well known. If you’re interested in playing football in a friendly, safety first environment, get in touch with Dexter Sports Walking Football Club now…
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For more tournament updates during the course of the season, including the 50s, 60s and 65s teams, be sure to follow us on our various social accounts to be ahead of the game…
