City comeback comes too late at the Wham Stadium
LINE-UPS:ACCRINGTON STANLEY: Mooney, Buxton, Winnard (capt), T. Davies, Mingoia, Windass, McConville, Crooks (Procter 72'), Pearson, Conneely (Barry 72'), Kee.
SUBS: Cornell, McCarten, Bruna, Wakefield, Etheridge.
GOALS: Windass 33', 34', Mingoia 61', Kee 64'
EXETER CITY: Olejnik, Woodman, Noble, Ribeiro, Oakley (capt) (Oyeleke 46'), Holmes, Nicholls (Morrison 53'), Nichols, Wheeler (Grant 66'), Tillson, Brown.
SUBS: Butterfield, Moore-Taylor, McCready, Pym.
Goals: Holmes 76', Grant 90'
Referee: Richard Clark
Report
DESPITE a late surge, Exeter City were beaten at the Wham Stadium after conceding four goals in two quickfire spells against Accrington Stanley.
In the absence of Jamie McAllister, Craig Woodman was handed a first league start of the season at the Wham Stadium, with Lee Holmes also coming into the starting line-up after coming off the bench in the previous week's win over Hartlepool United.
David Noble and Tom Nichols both shot over in the opening fifteen minutes, but the best chance of that period went the way of the home side, as Tom Davies pulled a full-stretch sprawling save out of Bobby Olejnik. City had a wonderful opportunity when Matt Oakley played David Wheeler through, but he didn't spot the runs of Lee Holmes and Tom Nichols, and shot wide.
But Stanley established a commanding lead completely out of nowhere. Josh Windass struck twice within the space of thirty seconds to put his side two goals up, and Stanley might have had more, but for a series of stops by Bobby Olejnik. Similarly, City could have had one or two themselves, but fortune was with the home side in the first half.
HALF-TIME: ACCRINGTON STANLEY 2-0 EXETER CITY
Rather than City coming back into it in the second half, Accrington again extended their advantage twice in quick succession around the hour. Piero Mingoia smashed in the third after being laid off, and Billy Kee ghosted through the City defence just minutes later.
Tom Nichols laid one off for half-time sub Manny Oyeleke before the midfielder hit an effort that went marginally the wrong side of the post. Holmes would pull a goal back, and Joel Grant would add another in the dying seconds of normal time, with both set up by assist machine Clinton Morrison.
But that would be it for City - their late comeback too late to drag them back on terms; City just left themselves with too much to do.
FULL-TIME: ACCRINGTON STANLEY 4-2 EXETER CITY
Attendance: 1,403 (201 away)
Man of the Match: Lee Holmes