Goals: Rihoy 9’; Loaring 14’, (pen) 67’; Fazakerley 63’; Canha 69’.

Guernsey rolled back the years as they breezed past Three Bridges with a five-goal blitz on bank holiday Monday to register a first win of the season give the goal difference a major boost.

It is the first time since last November the Green Lions have netted five (a 5-2 triumph over a poor Shoreham side), the most handsome since March 2015 (a 7-1 thrashing of South Park) and only the sixth time they scored five or more without a hefty contribution from Ross Allen. To add to the satisfaction, the first game since Alex Le Prevost announced his ‘retirement’ from GFC, Stanton and his comfortable back four picked up a clean sheet.

There might be a lot of young players coming through the Green Lions set-up at the moment, but it was the old guard (or as Tony Vance referred to Alex Le Prevost in the week ‘GFC ‘lifers’) that got them up and running at Jubilee Field with Dave Rihoy and Matt Loaring netting early.

But it turned out to be a mixture of the old and the new with last year’s Rovers title-winning attacking partnership Will Fazakerley and Carlos Canha (his first goal for the club) getting in on the act to add to Loaring’s second from the spot.

It was comfortable for the Sarnians from start to finish. Causing havoc down the flanks, Dave Rihoy and Matt Loaring each scored one and laid on another for their team-mate within a quarter of an hour of the first whistle.

Fazakerley had already seen a shot blocked from outside the area as GFC set out with intent, but they had to wait until the ninth minute for Loaring to cut inside from the left, beat two men and slide across the area for Rihoy to tee himself up and find the far corner.

Within five minutes, it was two. Kyle Smith’s high cross glanced of a Bridges head and fell for Rihoy at the far post. ‘Pedders’ returned the favour for his team-mate, squaring for the latter to thump home from the middle of the area.

It should perhaps have been three inside 20 minutes as Loaring rolled Fazakerley into the area one-on-one. Kieron Thorp made a strong block, with Smith dragging the rebound wide of the near post.

Even Jamie Dodd came close to getting in on the act midway through the half as Loaring opted for the pull-back free-kick but the Sarnian skipper’s shot flew wide of Thorp’s right-hand post. Soon after, Smith couldn’t quite get enough bend on his shot as he sent it wide from inside the area.

Wayward efforts past from Tyrone Berry and Trevor McCreadie and two routine gatherings from Stanton from two poor Jamie Taylor efforts were all the hosts could muster in the first half. They followed a Tom De La mare shot that skewed over just before the half-hour.

There is always a worry with Guernsey that not building on their advantage can come back to haunt them, but they showed no signs of slipping up as they came out for the second half in similar fashion, netting three in a seven-minute spell (similarly to how Ashford got the win at Footes Lane last week) to put real gloss on the afternoon.

Fazakerley launched a bouncer well over the top soon after the restart, but he wasn’t to be denied a third time just after the hour, and he won’t get many easier goals in green as a poor clearance by Thorp was latched onto just outside the area, with Smith squaring across goal for ‘Faz’ to roll into an empty net. It was GFC’s 300th league goal on the road.

More high pressing saw Fazakerley and Loaring combine to set up Kieran Mahon, but his low shot from a great position was blocked.

Guernsey were in full flow going forward now and just four minutes after the third, John Lansdale’s lunge on Fazakerley was punished with a penalty, which Loaring rolled coolly into the bottom corner, sending Thorp the wrong way for his brace.

Lansdale’s afternoon only got worse as his mistake allowed Canha, who had only been on the pitch five minutes, to nick the ball back and run through to tuck the ball into the far corner for five – the Green Lions and their fans were in dreamland. It marked another milestone of GFC’s 350th goal in an away fixture (not including ‘neutral’ fixtures – the 350th goal away from Footes Lane was scored by Fazakerley against Whyteleafe)

This dominant spell for Vance’s side was brought to an end as, from a recycled corner, substitute Seb Skillen’s low centre was met at the near post by Canha, but the Portuguese playmaker couldn’t muster a strong enough connection and Thorp held.

The Bridges did improve after that as they Green Lions went down a gear and instead looked to preserve a rare clean sheet. McCreadie’s low shot on the turn trickled wide and Omar Foulker shot was eventually blocked with purple-shirted Sarnians crowding out the penalty area.

Skillen’s free-kick across goal was comfortably dealt with by Thorp in the visitors’ final effort, while Jamie Crellin met a high throw at the other end only to head over.

The only dampener on the day came towards the end as a blow to the head saw Canha taken off as a precaution, leaving the Green Lions to finish the game with 10 men.

These sorts of afternoons don’t come around too often these days for GFC. This bank holiday Monday was one to savour and hopefully points to a change in fortunes for Guernsey, who moved from the foot of the table up to 11th.

The rest of the Bostik South East results were as follows: Ashford United 2-0 Faversham Town, East Grinstead Town 0-3 Whyteleafe, Greenwich Borough 1-2 VCD Athletic, Horsham 4-5 Haywards Heath Town, Hythe Town 2-2 Herne Bay, Phoenix Sports 1-0 Thamesmead Town, Ramsgate 3-1 Whitstable Town, Sevenoaks Town 2-3 Hastings United, Sittingbourne 0-2 Cray Wanderers.

Three Bridges: Kieron Thorp, Nathan Simpson, Lee Hall, Jamie Crellin (c), Jersen Grant, Trevor McCreadie, John Lansdale, Tyrone Berry (Omar Folkes 69’), Jamie Taylor (Mason Doughty 64’), Tadley Bromage, Alex Laing (Dan da Costa E Silva 70’). Not used: Giovanni Portiacci, Sam Gallagher.

Booked: Crellin.