FOLLAND Sports were kept waiting at Bournemouth Poppies on Saturday – because the pitch markings were not clearly visible.

But when action finally got under way at 3.20pm, it was the Planemakers who came good, 2-0, with goals by Mike Turvey and substitute Jamie Betteridge to climb to tenth in Sydenhams Premier.

“The ref was there at 1.30pm and yet it wasn’t until ten to three that the officials noticed you couldn’t see the white lines in both 18-yard boxes,” said bemused Follands boss Danny Bowers.

“It was a nightmare because you get the players up to speed and then it’s delayed by 20 minutes and they go cold again.

“The pitch down there is not the best in any case, so I was just happy to get the three points. Bournemouth are one of those teams who’ll take points off you, like (reigning champions) Sholing found out when they went down in March.”

With both skipper Jamie Barron and full-back Matt Graham unavailable, Follands had to shuffle the pack yet again.

It didn’t help when Turvey went off injured in the second half, but by then he had already set them on the path to victory.

It was Turvey’s replacement, teenager Jamie Betteridge, who bagged the second with one his first touches.

Betteridge will start in place of the unavailable Ryan Long when Follands travel to Christchurch in the league tomorrow, while ex-Sholing reserve Callum Brockway should again be paired with Burt in central defence.

“Callum and Matt have formed a nice partnership and it’s allowed me to put Monkey (James Roden) in midfield,” Bowers explained. "I didn't want to take Monkey out of the centre-half position, but he's given us the steel we missed in midfield."