BRAVE Welling put up a tremendous fight but Town had way too much quality and coasted into the second round.
Adrian Pennock's Conference South side worked hard throughout and were never disgraced, but once Andy Booth had scored a trademark header to give Town a 28th-minute lead it was one-way traffic.
Danny Schofield's penalty, after Chris Brandon had been tripped by Matt Lee just four minutes into the second half, confirmed there would be no anxious moments and Booth bagged another - his sixth of the season - on 69 minutes before being substituted shortly afterwards to a standing ovation.
Andy Holdsworth deservedly rounded off the Town scoring 10 minutes from time to cap a man-of-the-match performance, but Welling provided their 304 travelling fans with something to cheer two minutes later when captain Chris Moore neatly flicked home a free-kick.
A crowd of 5,518 gave the visitors a send-off to remember and both clubs will now concentrate on promotion battles featuring some tough matches to come.
Second-placed Welling have fifth-placed Farnborough at home tomorrow night while Town will be refreshed for the trip to Yeovil by getting a good, solid victory under their belts.
While 69 League places and three divisions separated Peter Jackson's men from Welling, Town went about the task in exactly the right way.
Let me correct that. After the first 10 minutes they went about the task in exactly the right way.
Too many long, hopeful punts were played in the early stages and it was only when Town started to move the ball wide and press down the flanks that they took complete control of the game.
Holdsworth was highly influential in that, while Brandon and Schofield looked much more lively than of late.
Mark Hudson also took a controlling role in the centre and, any time Town seemed like they were going to lose their grip, a few short, sharp tackles from Danny Adams and returning skipper Jon Worthington soon restored the dominance.
Welling played much of the game with only leading scorer Danny Kedwell up front, with strike partner Che Stadhart - one of four players to have featured against Town in the Cup for Gravesend four years ago - tucking in to complete two strong blankets of red.
Instead of the Swindon-style malaise, however, Town this time moved the ball more smartly and more accurately and they quickly had the part-timers - some of whom had worked the day before - looking tired.
A tally of 14 efforts on target to Welling's one told the story of Town's dominance and the victory margin would have been much higher but for some fine stops by keeper Jamie Turner and a few bits of careless finishing.
Brandon, for instance, went for glory at the near post when a simple square pass would have given Town a two-goal half-time advantage, and Gary Taylor- Fletcher was twice denied by the keeper before wasting a couple of headers.
In addition to his very well taken goals - the second of which was drilled in from a Paul Rachubka clearance - Booth saw a header miraculously blocked on the line while Pawel Abbott, dropped from the start, showed his eagerness with a couple of fierce drives when going on to replace the injured Brandon (knee), while Schofield should have notched another with an angled drive which was magnificently tipped over.
With a little more composure at times, Town could easily have doubled their tally, but that would have been tough on Welling, who stuck to their guns and did their management proud.
Most importantly from Town's point of view, there was much more purpose about their play than in recent League matches.
There were odd slip-ups at the back - usually covered in fine style, however - while going forward, there was a welcome return to fluency.
Keep it going!
Next page: Man of the Match >>>
Man of the Match: Andy Holdsworth
Pressing forward with real purpose, he made the best use of plenty of space down the right, created chances for others and ended up scoring a fine second goal of the season
Turning Point:
Andy Booth's towering header from a well-taken Danny Schofield corner on 28 minutes was just about the end of the contest.
At no stage did Welling look like breaking Town's hold and, indeed, Booth's high quality in the air was a telling factor throughout. Schofield's penalty four minutes into the second half was also a killer blow
How they rated:
Paul Rachubka Beaten by Welling's only effort on target, he did well mopping up at the back and, with one long punt, set up a goal Rating: 7/10
Andy Holdsworth A constant thorn in the Welling side, he linked well with Schofield on the right and provided a ready outlet for midfield Rating: 9/10
Danny Adams Back to his aggressive best, he played some neat build-up passes with Brandon and the attack. Much better Rating: 7/10
David Mirfin Produced a vital early clear-up tackle to prevent Stadhart scoring on the break. Strong and effective Rating: 7/10
Nathan Clarke Won plenty of headers and when his one slip allowed Kedwell to get free, he managed to get back and clear up Rating: 7/10
Danny Schofield Had Welling on the back foot most of the game with his trickery. Could well now become regular penalty taker Rating: 7/10
Jon Worthington Great to see him back and driving the team on. Made a couple of real eye-catching tackles and attacked pretty well Rating: 7/10
Mark Hudson The starting point for many an attack, looked composed and should have connected with an over-head kick first half Rating: 7/10
Chris Brandon Nice turn and skill to earn the penalty. His knee injury was Town's only concern from the comfortably won game Rating: 7/10
Andy Booth Two superbly taken goals and his aerial prowess proved a big difference between the sides. Excellent show Rating: 8/10
Gary T-Fletcher Might have had four goals on another day and should have got at least a couple. Worked hard and linked nicely Rating: 7/10
Spotlight on the ref:
In his first season as a Football League referee and, so far, confined to League II, Lancashire's Neil Swarbrick looked just like a man learning his trade at a higher level although he did not have a bad match at all. Should have reacted more quickly to certain situations, as should his assistants, but he had a reasonable day
Welling United: Turner; Lee, Solomon (Lawson 85), C Moore, Shearer; Carruthers (D Moore 80), Owen, Day, Clarke (Bodkin 65); Stadhart, Kedwell. Subs not used: Ibrahim, Penfold.
