Image: Michelle Carr
Match Report: Dave Ring
Portland United 3-1 Hungerford Town
FA Trophy
Saturday 29th August 2026 – 3:00pm
Camp & Satherley Stadium
Attendance: 160
Portland United produced another memorable cup performance as Jamie White marked his first start for the club with a goal in an impressive 3-1 victory over Hungerford Town in the FA Trophy.
The victory not only saw Kyle Critchell’s side progress to the First Round Proper of the competition, but also marked just the second time in the club’s history that Portland United have competed in the FA Trophy.
The Blues’ previous appearance came all the way back in the 1969/70 season, when Portland drew 1-1 with Redditch before suffering a 4-1 defeat in the replay.
Fifty-six years later, the current Portland side have written another chapter in the club’s history with a superb victory over Hungerford Town at the Camp & Satherley Stadium.
And it was an experienced head who got the Blues off to the perfect start.
Making his first start for Portland, Jamie White opened the scoring in the 29th minute with a well-taken finish to give the hosts a deserved lead.
Hungerford responded six minutes later, however, with Aime Kamdem bundling the ball home from a corner to bring the visitors level.
The Blues refused to be discouraged and regained the lead in first-half stoppage time through Pat Jenkins.
Jenkins had been heavily involved in the move from the outset, switching play to Woolford on the near side. Woolford then beat his man superbly before driving a low ball across the face of goal.
The delivery evaded Greg Borthwick but fell perfectly for Jenkins, who made no mistake with a clinical finish to send Portland into the interval 2-1 ahead.
The Blues came flying out of the blocks after the restart and doubled their advantage just two minutes into the second half.
Jenkins latched onto a ball into the Hungerford penalty area before firing beyond the visiting goalkeeper to score his second of the afternoon and put Portland firmly in control at 3-1.
There were further opportunities for the Blues to add to their tally.
Borthwick saw an effort blocked behind after combining with Jack Delves during a swift counter-attack, while substitute Ben Morris was denied by an excellent save after unleashing a fierce effort towards the top-right corner.
At the other end, Portland also had to defend their lead at times, with Toby Stainer-Reid and George Stuttle producing a crucial goal-line clearance in the first half to prevent Hungerford from taking the lead.
The Blues ultimately saw the game through in convincing fashion to secure a memorable FA Trophy victory and their place in the First Round Proper.
Manager Kyle Critchell admitted that the performance did not quite reach the levels Portland have shown in recent weeks, but was delighted with the result.
“It was a weird game actually. I thought quality was quite low from both sides.
“We made the changes that we needed to with Monday in mind as well. The margins between who’s starting and who’s not are so close now, but maybe those changes impacted us first half.
“We weren’t necessarily aggressive enough, but somehow we went in 2-1 up, which is great when you’re not playing well and you’re scoring goals.
“We were a bit better second half, but to win 3-1, we’re obviously ecstatic. They’re a club that’s just come down from Step 3 and it’s another win for us, which is huge.”
Critchell also confirmed that Stuttle’s half-time substitution was made with Monday’s league fixture against Shaftesbury in mind, rather than because of an injury.
“The decisions that we made today were purely based with Monday in mind. The league is incredibly important for us and whilst winning in the Trophy today was really important, the league is the bread and butter.”
White’s goal on his first start for the Blues was another highlight of the afternoon, with Critchell praising the experienced striker’s influence both on and off the pitch.
“We know what we’re going to get from Jamie,” said the manager. “He’s a goalscorer and he scored a goal.
“He’s a great lad. The experience, the know-how, the communication he gives to the younger players — there’s more to come from us for sure.”
The victory continues what has been an encouraging start to Portland’s first season at Step 4, with the Blues now having progressed in cup competitions on successive weekends.
For Critchell, days like this are another sign of just how far the club has come.
“Days like today for us are statements. We’ve made history over the last couple of seasons and we continue to do so.
“Winning games gives us confidence that we believe and we belong here, and at the moment we believe that we belong here.”
With Portland now through to the FA Trophy First Round Proper for the first time in the club’s history, another exciting chapter in the story of Portland United has been written.
FT: Portland Unite 3 Hungerford Town 1
