ADAM Roberts was honest enough to admit that his 82nd-minute winner against Shortwood United on Saturday wasn’t exactly what he had intended – but they all count.

With just eight minutes left of a soggy, windswept encounter against Shortwood United, the talented wideman – better known as ‘Taz’ – hung up a cross from the right byline hoping one of his teammates would get on the end of it.

Instead, the ball got caught in the swirling breeze and Shortwood keeper Tom King could only watch in astonishment as it sailed over his head and crept under the bar. It had already crossed the line before a desperate defender headed it into the roof of the net.

Assistant manager Paul Wiltshire chuckled: “We had a bit of a laugh in the changing room afterwards asking Taz to talk us through his goal. He said he put a bit of back-spin on it!

"I definitely think it was wind-assisted. I've never seen a ball behave like that before!"

Afterwards Roberts came clean and admitted: “I’ll be honest, I didn’t mean to score, but I put the ball into a dangerous area.”

The goal capped a good weekend for the Roberts family with younger brother Luke, formerly of AFC Totton, scoring twice as Poole Town retained top spot in the Southern Premier Division with a 2-1 home with over Cambridge City.

One league down, Winchester sit third in the Southern One South & West on the back of a sixth straight league victory and are just four points behind leaders Cinderford with a game in hand.

But there is a long way to go yet and Wiltshire believes that Saturday’s seventh-placed visitors Shortwood – who led 1-0 at half-time - will be right in the mix come April.

Reflecting on a tight 2-1 win played in dreadful conditions, he said: “It was quite even and at one stage Paul (Masters, manager) turned to me and said he wouldn’t be too unhappy with a point.

“But we had the wind behind us in the second half and we always felt that, with the conditions in our favour, we'd have the lion’s share of the play, and, with our reputation for scoring goals, I still thought we could win it.

“Shortwood are a good side who will be right up there. I didn’t really see a weakness in them and I’d go as far as to say they’re the best side we’ve played - and that includes (top-two) Cinderford and North Leigh.

“I felt we had more of the play in the first half when conditions were against us than they had in the second half. But it was hard work and it was important we reached half-time only 1-0 down.”

The goal that separated the sides arrived on 32 minutes when United’s star man Ross Stanley whipped a 20-yarder past City’s young Canadian keeper Brendan Norris.

City’s passing game suffered in the face of a gale, but there had been a moment of promise on 18 minutes when a slick build-up, including back-heels from Warren Bentley and Roberts, ended with Bentley delivering the ball to the far post where Zach Glasspool headed tamely at the ’keeper.

Winchester, presented with October’s South & West club-of-the-month award by local MP Steve Brine, looked more like themselves after the break and took just over three minutes to equalise.

Shortwood failed to clear a corner from City’s workaholic midfielder Jamie Barron and, as the ball broke loose in the six-yard box, young Matt Benham was in like a shot to smash it home.

Top gun Bentley was denied by an outstanding save from King and Barron smacked the corner of post and bar with a stunning free-kick as City looked to put the game to bed.

Roberts may not have intended his winner, but it was welcome reward for the hard-working Citizens who, as they hit the road to Marlow on Tuesday, are starting to add defensive resilience to their abundance of attacking flair.

Winchester City: Brendan Norris, Jake Newton, Leigh Mills, Jamie Barron, Jamie Thoroughgood, Rob Flooks, Adam Roberts, Adam Tomasso (Lewis Fennemore, 73), Zach Glasspool (Harlan Basker, 87), Warren Bentley, Matt Benham (Dan Cann, 80). Subs (not used): Javi Santafe Vivo, Luke Benali.

Referee: Jason Connelly

Attendance: 194