Stuart Fleetwood felt Swindon Supermarine didn’t look like a team trying to get out of trouble in their 2-1 defeat to Dorchester Town.

On a heavy pitch, the Magpies put in a resolute defensive performance and deserved their victory, taking their chances, and stifling Marine’s highly effective passing game.

The away team took the lead in the 19th minute when a cross found the head of Olaf Koszela who nodded back across goal for Will Fletcher to knock the ball home from close range.

Marine were struggling to create openings but in the 32nd minute, Dave Sims-Burgess played in Henry Spalding who finished with panache from fifteen yards.

The visitors retook the lead just before the halftime whistle when a Corby Moore corner was headed across goal by Will Spetch, Sam Turl headed the ball off the line only for the ball to hit Fletcher and ricochet over the line.

In the second half Marine had plenty of possession but rarely threatened on goal with their only real effort of note coming five minutes from the end when Henry Spalding hit a well-struck half-volley just wide of the post.

Indeed, in the second half, it was the Magpies who had the better chances with a good strike from Jordan Thomas going just wide and Conor Brann having to make a couple of sharp saves.

The visitors very much deserved their victory. They defended resolutely, took their chances well, and had more efforts on goal. Marine meanwhile barely fired a shot on target and, in comparison to recent form, were decidedly off-colour.

Stuart Fleetwood said: “We didn’t start with any intensity, we can argue about officials, but Dorchester fully deserved their win today.

“They battled harder than us and they looked like the team that was trying to get out of trouble, whereas I felt like we turned up and just felt it would happen for us.

“I was very disappointed with the lack of movement, the intensity of our passing, and in key moments we didn’t create enough chances from that.

“I am not glad that has happened, but I could see that coming today, just from what I was hearing off the back of our great form going into a game where everyone is expecting us to beat a team above us, for some reason.

“They looked like the team trying to get out of trouble, rather than us, and that is the most disappointing thing.”