CROCKED keeper Kenny Vaughan manfully managed 90 minutes with two broken ribs but could not prevent 10-man Poppies’ 6-0 pummelling at Bemerton.

Stricken stopper Vaughan was thrown into action by his own father – Bournemouth boss Ken – after deputy Sean Lillington had pulled out of the trip to Wiltshire with a twisted knee.

And the visitors’ cause wasn’t helped when, at 2-0 down, striker Martin Warren received his marching orders for a second bookable offence.

But despite the battering, the Poppies manager was proud of his team’s display and saved special praise for his son’s commitment to the cause.

Vaughan Snr told the Daily Echo: “Sean pulled out pretty late in the day and we had no time to sign anyone else.

“We were going to put Charlton Clarke in goal and it was a tough call, but I knew that Chalky (Bemerton manager Ian Chalk) would clock that straight away, so I asked Kenny to give us 20 minutes and see how it went.

“He got a hand to four of the six goals, which is remarkable when you think he could hardly move.

“The other two were cracking goals that he had no chance with. He deserves a lot of credit because they were good and with an outfield player in goal, it could have been 10 or 12.

“I defy anyone in the league to go to Bemerton with nine fit players for that length of time and get a positive result.

“The grit and determination shown by all of the lads was unbelievable. It might sound silly but, apart from the result, I was pretty pleased.”

Kane O’Keefe and Joe Sanger put the hosts two up inside 12 minutes before Warren’s dismissal. O’Keefe added his second on the stroke of half-time.

Poppies kept plugging away but shipped a fourth against the run of play when Thomas Roberts converted a penalty. Seb Dawes added number five before O’Keefe completed his hat-trick late on.

Vaughan Snr expects to sign another keeper for tomorrow’s trip to Sholing, with Lillington unlikely to recover in time.

Poppies: Vaughan, Ayrton (Pearce, 73), Jackson, Crow, Bartlett, Saadi (Andrews, h-t), Robinson, Corby, Warren, Burgis, Phillips (Cooper, 71). Unused subs: Clarke, Turner.

  • Dean Evans’s last-gasp leveller secured a point for Verwood Town in a 2-2 draw at AFC Portchester.

The Potters had led through Ben Kelly’s header on 55 minutes but the hosts fought back through goals from Lewis Stockford and Nathan Kirby.

However, Adie Arnold’s men left with a share of the spoils when Evans smashed home the equaliser from 25 yards.

Potters: Lynch, Evans, Homer, Oldring, Kelly, Dyer, Saxby, Webb, Lovell, Smith (Haskell, 78), Hill. Unused subs: Kimber, Gilham.

  • Hamworthy United drew 1-1 at Fareham Town after Sam Pekun’s first-half strike was cancelled out by Bryn McKie’s penalty for the hosts.

Hammers: Knights, Head, Biles, Saunders, Holland, Claremont, Lanahan, Stacey (Hester, 75), Penny (Ayling, 80), Pekun (Shovelton, 65), Allen.