Basingstoke Town secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Plymouth Parkway in a tightly contested Southern League Premier South match at the Winklebury Stadium last Saturday.

Basingstoke started brightly with Liam Ferdinand and Ashleigh Artwell both going close in the opening stages.

Ferdinand saw a volley fly wide early on before Artwell missed a golden header at the back post.

Ben Cook also tried his luck with a curling effort that went just over the bar, while Shane Hollamby's first-half header was cleared off the line.

The second half continued in the same vein with both sides cancelling each other out.

'Stoke made a double substitution just after the break, bringing on Stefan Brown and Joe Redmond for Artwell and Hollamby respectively.

Ferdinand had another chance to break the deadlock on 55 minutes, but he failed to convert.

The breakthrough finally came in the 81st minute when Basingstoke were awarded a penalty.

Bradley Wilson stepped up and coolly slotted the ball home to give his side the lead.

'Stoke brought on Shamar Moore late on to see out the game and secure all three points.

The win keeps Basingstoke at 10th place on the table with 43 points, while Plymouth Parkway remain in relegation zone at 19th place.

Special praise was given to academy player Joe Redmond, who made his senior league debut for Basingstoke in the match.

After the match, gaffer Dan Brownlie said it was a well-deserved win.

"We dominated the ball first half and the majority of second half. We created some really good chances.

"We felt like it was coming. But we have had those days where we are making good opportunities, but the goals don't come. The big thing today was maintaining the clean sheet. Sometimes when you're searching for a goal you get frustrated and lose concentration at the back. It is a really good performance in that sense.

"I'm not going to lie, the penalty was soft at best. But in terms of overall game, I don't think anyone can deny that we didn't deserve to win it."

'Stoke will next face Hayes & Yeading United away on Saturday, March 1.