Club Statement

Mousehole AFC can confirm that the club has received a one point deduction from the Southern League for fielding an ineligible player in the recent fixture against Westbury.

The club accepts both the point deduction and the associated fine. A full internal review has been conducted, and procedures have been strengthened to ensure this does not happen again.

The club will be making no further comment on this matter.

Until a few weeks ago Hartpury were aiming for the play-offs but a bad run had left them in the limbo land of mid-table. Having lost to three other relegation threatened teams they seemed there for the taking and indeed they were.  

Mousehole’s away form this season has been a revelation and the three points that travelled home on the Seagulls’ party bus were well deserved. A first half that saw the Seagulls have more chances, more possession and more spark ended with them one nil up.  

The goal was good enough to win any game and it was fitting that it came from the boot of our Portuguese superstar; Paulo Ranalli Sousa. Ed Harrison gave him the ball 25 yards out. The little fella had driven from Sheffield, the northern industrial town not the sleepy Cornish village, and was too tired to run with it. He looked up, saw the keeper off his line and drove a lob over the stricken stopper.   

The fans erupted, the bench exploded and his team mates mobbed him.  

I’m writing this on the coach, it’s nearly midnight and I’m tired and emotional. The details don’t matter apart from these: 

1. Mousehole had sixteen players who gave everything in their locker to win this game.  

2. Mousehole had more fans at this game than did Hartpury. That’s crazy. Thank you to every fan who has followed us this season.  

3. Ollie made a save in the last minute that Gordon Banks would have been proud of. But we’re used to his heroics.  

4. As a season ends that hasn’t brought what we hoped, this is still a wonderful club, supported by fanatical fans, run by volunteers who put in hours beyond all understanding.  

As we say goodbye to Jake and Fletch whilst we may be sad at their leaving we should be grateful that their lives and ours intersected for this surreal journey.  

It’s the end of one fabulous period in the club’s history and with a bit of luck, the start of another.  

Falmouth Town 1 – 2 Mousehole 

Relegation six-pointers don’t come any bigger than this. Throw in the fact that these Cornish neighbours have a history and that there were several members of both squads who had previously worn the other shirt and you have a recipe for a big, with a capital b match. 

Before kick-off there were just three points between the teams but Falmouth had two games in hand so if Mousehole wanted to push the Town into their rear-view mirror they had to win. The gut feel amongst fans was that Falmouth are a bogey team for the Seagulls but in fact it’s the other way round of late. Mousehole had won three and drawn two of the previous six encounters. The problem was that the single loss was a painful one on a horrible Boxing Day afternoon and the bitter taste of that hung heavy in the air as the sides emerged on a totally different day.  

The sun was out and there was a joyous Bank Holiday atmosphere. Nearly eight hundred packed the ground with the tension further ramped up by the Mousehole Vuvuzelas! 

The half began with the ball mainly in the Falmouth half but though they needed to keep their wits about them at the back they were able to counter quickly if not effectively. The first big chance fell to the hosts. A hoofed ball fell to their central midfielder who played it out to the left. The winger took it in his stride, and entered the box to be faced by a quickly advancing Chenoweth. The keeper didn’t get a hand to the shot but did enough to force the forward to screw his shot wide when he should have done better. 

The closest Mousehole came to breaking the deadlock came from a long Harris throw in on the right. With the wind at his back his throw landed in the box, bounced up and over the defence and landed in the goal. The men in green and white cheered for a goal but the referee rightly ruled that no one had touched it on the way in, so no goal. 

The first goal, when it came on the half hour, was a beaut. Ed Harrison ripped a pass across the pitch from left to right. Jack Symons controlled it first time and began a hazy run towards the box. Step-overs and chops flummoxed the defence enough to give him space to curl a lovely left footer into the far corner. 

Falmouth should have equalised less than ten minutes later. A hoofed ball up the left found their winger who did well to get into the box and pull it back into the danger area. A little bit of pinball finished with the ball at the feet of a forward only six yards out. With a clear sight of goal, he smashed it high and wide. 

That error proved costly just before half time when Mousehole showed the F-Troop how Barcelona do it. Cairo to Mitchell, to Nixon, to Turner. Turner took it inside, beat his man and then lathered it home inside the keeper’s near post. The game should have been done and dusted when Mitchell created a chance from nothing on the edge of the box. He clipped it over the keeper but agonisingly over the bar. 

This left Falmouth with the crumbs of a comeback to aim for in the second half but as they trooped off they knew they’d been taught a football lesson, not just in slick passing but in true grit. Your correspondent’s favourite moment of the first half was Alex Cairo chasing fifty yards back to dispossess Seagull old boy, Oscar Massey, quite legally, but leaving him in a heap of his own despair. 

The second half was about game management. Something this Mousehole team have recently acquired. Falmouth created little but what they did was easily repelled. Mousehole, it has to be said, rarely threatened to increase their lead but they didn’t need to. You only get three points whatever the score. When the Falmouth centre forward was shown a red card for smashing Ed Harrison in the throat the game was over. A late consolation penalty, incorrectly awarded for a challenge just outside the box, could not hide the gulf in class between these two teams. Having said that, we should hope that the F-Troop are still with us next season. The party don’t start till they walk in, albeit it’s often over once the vuvuzelas pipe up.   

Mousehole 0 – 0 Melksham 

Goalless draws are very rare in Step 4 but this was the second such result in the two games between these two teams this season. One hundred and eighty minutes of football with zero goals between. Is that because their defences are really goodor because their forwards are not so good? With both teams hovering in and around the relegation zone the answer is probably the latter. 

In the run in Mousehole had already faced two other candidates for the drop: Willand and Tavistock and only managed a single point. As we’ve often seen this season the men in green and white play better against better opposition so the omens were not good. They got even worse when the team sheet came out and there was no hitman Turner and no poacher Prynn. On the upside this match saw the first start for Josh Bissett in over a year. Could his magic feet be the answer. 

In a first half which saw sixty percent of possession go to the home team they created seven chances. Sadly none were hit on target. There was some slick play, almost like the Mousehole of old, but the final product was too often rushed and wasted. With the strong wind at their backs the feeling around the ground was that a half time lead was needed. Melksham defended well and occasionally hit on the break but they too never quite had the quality to make it count. 

The best two Mousehole chances fell to Bissett and Symons. In both instances the ball came to them following nice flowing moves but both times they marginally rushed their efforts and the ball flew high and wide. 

After the break, with the wind slowing forward movement for the Seagulls it was always going to be tough but when Ed Harrison received an unlucky second yellow card  and headed for a shower the hill got steeper. What started as a match where three points were the target, suddenly a point became the aim. 

In all truth neither side looked likely to score after the dismissal. Mousehole defended valiantly and Melksham showed why they are where they are in the league with an inability to break down a team with fewer players. 

On the balance of play over ninety minutes the shared points was probably about right and with results elsewhere going their way this turned out to be a better day for Mousehole than the rest of the drop candidates. 

Five games to go.  

Bishop’s Cleeve 1 – 2 Mousehole 

They say good things come to those who wait. We had waited seventy-seven days since the last Mousehole win. We had waited even longer for an away win; ninety-eight days. Yes, we’d waited and yes good things came. 

What is it about the current Mousehole team that it plays its best football against the best teams. If the league was based on our results against the top six, we’d be in the top six! If it’s frustrating that we can only draw at Tavistock then it is total joy when we win at places like the Cleeve. Many believe it was the ghost goal here last season that cost us the three points that would have seen us in the play-offs so this was some sweet justice. 

From the first whistle there was something special in the air. Was it that the game was on plastic, was it that it came the morning after the night before*, or was it the desperation of a proper relegation battle? Who knows, but whatever alchemy Jake Ash managed to conjure up on a day that started with torrential rain and finished in bright sunshine, this was a pleasure to witness. 

Tallan Mitchell opened the scoring with the sort of goal that only Tallan Mitchell scores. He nicked it in the corner of the box surrounded by hordes of Cleevers. He jinked this way and that, looking for an opening, the chance seemed to have gone, then it came back, and went again, but then he chopped it to his left and smashed it home past a bemused keeper. Like an audience stooge who has his watch stolen by a magician the Cleeve stopper, looked around to work out where the ball had come from and how it had ended up in his net. The answer was pure Mitchell magic. 

The first half was as good a forty-five minutes as Mousehole have played this season. The Bishops could not find a way past a defence that got in more blocks than an average season of Cornish road works. Every which way they turned their forward path was thwarted and they were relieved to go in at the break only one down. When they did occasionally beat the defence Ollie Chenoweth with hands the size of shovels was there to deny them. 

All too rarely this season, our brave Seagulls have only managed one good half in a game. What this has meant is that wins have turned to draws and draws to defeats. When the hosts equalised nine minutes in to the second half this looked like another one of those days. A corner wasn’t properly cleared and the hoofed ball back in to the box fell to a free striker who lashed it home. Heads dropped, but on this occasion, only momentarily. 

With the cliff edge of relegation looming in the rear view mirror the men in navy blue dusted themselves down and went for it. Only eight minutes later they were ahead again. A Bishops Cleeve attack was stopped and Tallan Mitchell picked the loose ball up in the part of the box from where he’d scored in the first half. He pushed the ball forward and looked up to see Hayden Turner running into open space. The ball was diagonal, long and true, landing in the stride of the hitman.  

He still had much to do with a defender right on him but that didn’t matter. He cut inside, turning the defender hither and thither, and pulled a shot inside the near post, totally wrong-footing the keeper who had expected a curler to the other corner. 

With half an hour still to go this game was far from over but something in the demeanour of the players gave the impression that this was a game they would not let slip. The home side had chances but none that were heart-stoppingly close and as time ticked away and Ed Harrison used all his years of experience at Tavistock to slow the game down, the travelling fans began to celebrate. Every Mousehole tackle, block and clearance was cheered like a goal. Every Cleeve miskick, misplaced pass, and tumble was equally enjoyed. When local hero Nigel D’Arcy, blew the final whistle you could have been mistaken for thinking that Mousehole had won the league, the cup and Eurovision. 

Yes, this was just three points towards safety, but the victory meant so much more in the light of the *previous evening’s announcement of Jake’s and Adam Fletcher decision to step down at the season’s end. Their reign might be coming to a closebut there are six matches left and if this performance is anything to go by it’s going to be a pleasure to watch. 

Mousehole 1-1 Westbury 

Terrible weather which included rain and gale force winds, combined with road closures and a team from a long way away meant that the crowd for this game was the lowest at Trungle for many a year. With the team needing a positive result that was a disappointment but the men in white and green did not let it affect them. 

In a first half which was very tight the first chance fell to Mousehole’s returning loanee Ryan Downing. Yes, the same Downing who had traumatised the Seagulls’ defence in the Cornwall Senior Cup Semi Final. The question everyone’s lips was “could he play as well for us as he had against us?” He had the opportunity to answer that in the first few minutes.  

Tim Nixon chased a ball down the left and pulled it back to Downing around the penalty spot. With the goal gaping, the floppy haired forward passed the ball wide of the keeper but also wide of the goal. It was the sort of chance that screamed sitter. 

Mousehole were made to regret that miss only ten minutes later when Westbury found some space in the middle and sent a pass out to their left. With Seagulls’ defenders running back towards their goal none of them noticed a lone Westburyforward sneaking up behind them. When the cross came in the forward nipped ahead of everyone and got a touch to send it home ahead of Ollie Chenoweth’s diving grasp. 

With so much positivity coming on the back of Saturday’s plucky performance against Frome this felt like a blow to the solar-plexus. With half an hour left in the half there was plenty of time but thew teams seemed to cancel each other out to a large extent and neither keeper was overly troubled ahead of the break. 

Mousehole knew that Westbury, following a long minibus trip, would be happy to waste time and hold on to what they had so a quick start to the second half was vital. And that is exactly what they got just five minutes after the interval. 

From a Westbury goal kick* the ball was lifted high by the wind and attacked as it fell by an advancing Ed Harrison. From there it was flicked on by Downing into the path of Timothy ‘The Nightmare’ Nixon. On the edge of box he let it bounce and as it dropped again he smashed it home. A bit of a route one goal but no one was complaining. At that moment, for the first time in a long while, the momentum was with the men in white and green. 

Sadly, they could not capitalise and as the weather worsened and the wind strengthened it became harder and harder to play the sort of football that Mousehole has become famous for. Too often the ball went long, encouraged by the wind at the backs, but too rarely were clear cut chances made. The best chance of the remainder of the match fell to Westbury and it had Seagull hearts in mouths. A bit of pinball ended when the ball rolled into the path of the dark green’s number nine just ten yards out. With only Chenoweth to beat a goal looked certain but when there is Chenoweth to beat nothing is certain and the turquoise clad stopped did what he so often does and saved the day for Mousehole. 

They came into the game wanting a win, but in all honesty ended it happy with a point. It’s a question we may repeat a few times in the last few games: was it a point won or two lost? Time will tell. 

Mousehole 0-2 Frome 

Frome are so far ahead at the top of Division One South of the Southern League that they are practically in the Northern Section. Even the teams in the play-off zone are having to use binoculars to see them. Ahead of this game they had lost only twice. For Mousehole, hovering dangerously close to the relegation zone, this was probably the last opposition they would have chosen to face after the miserable night at Willand. 

Whilst ultimately the result brought no more points into the Mousehole pot, it was actually a performance that reminded everyone; staff, players and fans, that we have a team who, on their day, can compete with the best. The fact that ‘their day’ has been too rare this season is not something to dwell on till the season’s end because this performance could possibly be the catalyst to a solid end of the campaign that may see relegation avoided. 

The first half was one of few chances, only eight in total and only two of them on target. That the majority of those fell to Frome was not a surprise. What was unexpected was that the apocryphal neutral visitor from Mars would have had trouble working out which team was the table topper and which had neck ache from looking over their shoulder. 

Where the performance against Willand lacked spine, endeavour and energy, this was a match where every Mousehole player stood up to be counted. In fact, the best chance was probably Mousehole’s and it came with moments to go before half time. With a free kick on the left the box was crowded like a Premier League corner. Jack Calver suddenly ran away from the melee to the edge of the box to receive a pass from Turner. He whipped his left foot at but a bobble sent it wildly wide. A neat move. 

The match was decided in a crazy four minute spell either side of seventy minutes. 

After sixty-eight minutes Frome took the lead. A long cross from their left flew a long way to the far post where substitute Dave Duru found space by pushing Sullivan in the back. Was it a foul? No one appealed and Sullivan didn’t go to ground so the referee didn’t have a decision to make. Duru controlled the cross with one touch then hammered it past Chenoweth from close range. 

Two minutes later Frome doubled their lead. The Frome winger skipped past our skipper and laid the ball back to his full back. He floated a cross to the back post where two Frome players stood in not so splendid isolation. Either could have put it way but it only needed one. 

Mousehole have come back from situations like this before but any chance of that disappeared a minute later when James Ward was sent for an early shower within seconds of the restart. It was the result of the perennial undoing of the team this season; the long straight ball from the other half. On this occasion it flew high and straight towards Ward and Duru. Ward was ahead of Duru when they seemed to tangle arms. Who initiated the contact was unclear but the referee deemed that Ward had pulled Duru back and prevented a goal scoring opportunity, or DOGSO as it is known. Ward trudged off and took with him any hopes left for a point in this game. 

Mousehole battled valiantly on but the gulf was now too much to overcome and so the 2026 undefeated home run came to an end. A disappointing result but an encouraging performance. 

Willand 4-1 Mousehole 

The statistics from the history of football going back to the days when the boots were hobnail and the shirts were woollen all suggest that if you score the first goal you have an eighty percent chance of winning the game and a ninety percent chance of not losing. For a number of season Mousehole AFC defied logic, statistics and history. This was a night when they would have preferred not to but in this thrice re-arranged fixture they did. 

A classic Tallan Mitchell and Mousehole goal in the third minute should have been the hors d’oeuvre to a fabulous relegation-fear relieving away victory. It wasn’t. 

Let’s enjoy the goal. A nice move down the left set Hayden Turner free with grass to run in to. He ran, looked up and saw Mitchell at the far post. The pass evaded the defence and found the diminutive number ten at the far post and he slid it home from a tight angle. To say that was as good as it got would be an understatement. 

It’s not unfair to suggest that from here on in it was men against boys as a beautiful start turned in to a horrible night. The wheels started to come off less than ten minutes later. A long straight ball from the Willand keeper led to chaos in the Mousehole defence. Ollie , Kaleb and Joel all went for the same ball along with a forward. They all arrived at the same time but, crucially, the Willand forward, who seemed the least likely to get there first, got his head to the ball just before being clattered. Penalty. Goal. One all. 

A long straight ball from the Willand full back led to chaos in the Mousehole defence. No one cleared it which left a Willand player, from a seated position, to play the ball into a team mate’s path to roll it home. Two one. 

On the half hour, the home side had a free kick near the half way line. I’m copy and pasting the next bit, it’s easier; A long straight ball from the Willand player led to chaos in the Mousehole defence. This resulted in Sullivan nodding past Chenoweth. Three one. Game over. 

The frustrating thing about the second half was that Mousehole had chances. Quite a few chances but Willand’s players put their bodies on the line, literally and metaphorically, to make sure we didn’t score. There was a period during which, had Mousehole scored, the comeback would have been on but these hopes were snuffed out just before the hour. 

A throw in on Willand’s left wasn’t cleared, when it could have been, and it fell to a lone striker on the edge of the box. He showed a composure that none of the men in navy managed at the other end when he touched it to his left and passed it inside the far post. 

More chances came Mousehole’s way after that but there was little conviction that they could get back into this game. Heads had dropped a long time before the final whistle. Only a few weeks ago there was still the outside chance of a play offbut Mousehole now finds themselves in a relegation scrap. 

JAKE ASH AND ADAM FLETCHER TO STEP DOWN AT END OF SEASON

Mousehole AFC can confirm that First Team Manager Jake Ash and Director of Football Adam Fletcher will step down from their roles at the end of the current season.

After several demanding seasons building and sustaining a team competing at this level of the game, Jake and Adam feel the time is right to pause and reflect on what has been achieved over a significant period. 

Jake and Adam made the decision some time ago that the end of the season would be the right moment to step down, and have since informed the board of their intention, which the club has, reluctantly, accepted.

While the original plan had been to keep this private until the end of the campaign, it is felt that making the decision public now provides clarity and allows the club to begin planning for the future, while maintaining full focus on the challenge of retaining our Southern League status.

Jake has led the Seagulls for seven seasons, while Adam has played a central role in the club’s football operations for eight years. Together, they have overseen one of the most successful and transformative periods in Mousehole AFC’s history.

Their tenure has seen the club grow both on and off the pitch, guiding the Seagulls through promotions, memorable cup runs, and the continued development of a strong footballing identity that has helped establish Mousehole as a respected presence in the Southern League.

Throughout their time at the club, Jake and Adam have helped establish an environment built on high standards – one that has been relentless in its pursuit of improvement, respectful in its values, and reflective in its approach – leaving a lasting impact on players, staff and supporters alike.

Mousehole AFC Chair Deryk Heywood said:

“Between them, Jake and Adam have given everything to Mousehole over a long period of time, and we’re incredibly grateful for what they’ve achieved.

Jake’s seven years have been nothing short of remarkable. The commitment he’s shown, alongside a full-time teaching job, is something I’ve never seen before. People see the 90 minutes on a Saturday, but the work behind the scenes is relentless – the preparation, the travel, the hours he’s put in to get us where we are. Over 300 games, promotions, winning the Western League and reaching the Southern League playoffs – it’s put Mousehole on the map and given us memories I’ll never forget. Now it’s time for him to enjoy some well-earned time with his family, who’ve all been right behind him.

Adam has been just as important in his own way. I can remember him being born, and to see what he’s become at this football club has been special. He’s a real football person with a brilliant eye for detail and creativity. Whether it was the look of the kit, the feel of the dressing room, or those little touches that make players feel valued, Adam was exceptional. It’s often the small things that make the biggest difference, and he understood that better than anyone. His energy and enthusiasm lifted everyone around him.

A football club is about people driving each other on, and both Jake and Adam have done that brilliantly. We’ll miss them both, but we wish Jake, Melissa and the girls, and Adam, Tegan, Stan and all their families, the very best for the future. They’ll always be welcome at Mousehole, and they’ll always be a big part of what this club has become.”

Manager Jake Ash said:

It has been an incredible honour to manage this football club for the past seven seasons.

From the moment I was given the opportunity, I knew it was a special place and together we have created memories and achieved things that will stay with me for the rest of my life.

I’m immensely proud of what we’ve built – not just on the pitch in terms of promotions and players progressing, but in how we’ve relentlessly tried to drive the whole club forward, creating an identity and an environment that has allowed people to thrive.

But all of that comes at a cost, and the truth is my battery is empty. I can see it and feel it, and I know I can’t be what I want to be while the energy to be wholly relentless isn’t there. For this amazing club to keep moving forward, it deserves someone who can.

This hasn’t been an easy decision, but it is one that was made some time ago, to step aside at the end of the season. The intention was to keep this in-house until then, but as is often the case in football, word begins to spread. I wanted the people who matter to hear it from me, and not from someone else.

There is still work to be done between now and the end of the season, and I remain fully focused on finishing as strongly as we can. Myself and the staff are totally and utterly committed to this group and to this football club, and our full focus is on ensuring we finish the season strongly.

The journey isn’t quite over yet.

Director of Football Adam Fletcher said:

My eight years at the Mousehole AFC have meant far more to me than just the football. 

Together we have shared some incredible moments, three promotions, Western League champions and some unforgettable trips in the Algarve that strengthened our team and made memories for life. One of my biggest highlights was watching Kev’s “Champions” video as a group before heading off for an afternoon at Julia’s on the beach to celebrate our success. 

As much as the results mean so much to us all, it’s the people that have made it so special.  The staff, players, volunteer, board members and supporters are the heart of the club and have all had a huge impact on my time here. Some of whom started as strangers and became lifelong friends.

Mousehole has given me some of the best days of my life. I have given everything I could to the club in my time, and I hope that showed in everything that the club achieved together.

Now it’s time for a new chapter for the Mousehole, and some time away from working in football for me.

No doubt I will continue to support the club in any way I can and I look forward to seeing all of you next season, cheering you on from the sidelines as a supporter.

Everyone at Mousehole AFC would like to place on record our sincere thanks to Jake and Adam for their extraordinary commitment to the club. Their leadership, professionalism andpassion have played a huge role in shaping the modern era of the Seagulls.

With several important matches still to come before the end of the season, Jake and Adam will continue to lead the team as we look to finish the campaign strongly.

Further updates regarding the club’s football structure for next season will be announced in due course