Exeter City manager Matt Taylor claimed his side could have scored more as they broke the club’s record for an away win with a 7-0 demolition of Cheltenham Town in the first round of the Carabao Cup.
Four goals in a wonderful 20-minute spell in the first half helped the Grecians into a 5-0 lead against their League One competitors.
They found the back of the net twice more in the second half to set a new record in the club’s 121-year history.
“It could have been worse for the opposition,” Taylor told BBC Radio Devon.
Embed from Getty Images“We seemed to score at will, our box entries were outstanding and we also ringed the edge of the box, which is why we got some good clinical finishes around that area as well.
“That’s a really big scoreline, we’ve come away to League One opposition and we’ve dominated the game and won convincingly.”
Cheltenham made eight changes from their starting eleven that lost away to Barnsley on Saturday while Exeter made five changes from the team that beat Port Vale 4-0.
A substandard Cheltenham clearance was seized upon and Jake Caprice’s low ball was touched over the line by Sam Nombe to make it 1-0.
Embed from Getty ImagesAlex Hartridge’s cross from the left found its way to Archie Collins on the edge of the area and he fired in the second just three minutes later.
Matt Jay made it 3-0 with a far post header after Caprice’s delivery from the right in the 28th minute and Pierce Sweeney’s wonderful cross was nodded in by Nombe for his second and Exeter’s fourth.
Nombe left Tom Bradbury bamboozled and found Jack Sparkes to make it five in first-half stoppage time.
Harry Kite made it 6-0 in the 50th minute after a long throw was only half cleared to him on the edge of the box.
Josh Coley rounded off the scoring six minutes before the end to pile on Cheltenham’s misery as they slumped to their heaviest defeat at the Completely-Suzuki Stadium for more than 30 years.
“We were miles off it and that has to be a wake-up call,” said Cheltenham boss Wade Elliot to BBC Sport, whose side have lost all three games they’ve played season.
“The fans were great, sticking with us, but it was a horror show.”
Having signed just two players since winning promotion from League Two last season, Taylor is hopeful that his side’s recent performances will help encourage more new faces to come to St James Park.
“If I was a footballer I’d want to come and play for this football club,” he said to BBC Radio Devon.
“They get well-coached, they get fantastic opportunities, they get really well-looked after and the team plays a certain style of football.
“It’s easy for me to say that, but we’ve got to put that into a recruitment process which attracts players.”
