The Terras appeared to be heading out of the competition when Henry Spalding fired the Dolphins ahead in the 87th minute, converting the rebound after Harry Dillon had saved his penalty.

However, substitute Lewis Brown struck a dramatic equaliser in the fifth minute of stoppage time to force a shootout, which Weymouth won 5-4 after Poole's Harry Thomas fired the decisive spot-kick over the crossbar.

Wells made several changes to his side for the contest at the Bob Lucas Stadium but was delighted to see his players maintain the mentality he is trying to establish at the club.

He said: "Again, mentality is all about winning for us in a minute.

"And that's one thing I said to the lads, winning is a mentality and it's important that we continue that.

"Obviously, quite a few changes in the squad tonight. And it's good to see that the lads that have come in today have kept that mentality going."

Wells had previously indicated that the Dorset Senior Cup would effectively take the place of a training session, allowing him to assess different players and approaches in a competitive environment.

The Weymouth manager explained that the competition offered an opportunity to give his players greater responsibility on the pitch while assessing their understanding of the team's approach.

He said: "I don't mean to be disrespectful, but it's an opportunity for us to have a look at a few things and maybe let it be a little bit more player-led in terms of performance out there rather than everything coming from the side for us.

"See where their understanding is and a few other bits, and allows the opportunity for other lads to showcase themselves and show us what they're about."

Wells believes competitive matches provide a more valuable learning experience than conventional training sessions, particularly when assessing players' decision-making.

He added: "Obviously we've watched the games back after we played them on a Saturday but nothing actually beats playing a match, does it?

"It gives them a good opportunity to actually go and do it for real rather than just stop-starting training or things being broken down.

"They've got to make their own decisions when they're out there.

"So certainly from the sides, it shows us a good understanding and, again, nothing beats learning while actually doing it."

Poole also fielded a mixture of senior and younger players, including under-23s prospect Siam Aldridge, who made his first appearance for the Dolphins.

Wells was pleased with the competitive nature of the encounter and praised the application shown by both teams.

He said: "We've applied ourselves the same as they have, to be fair.

"And, you know, both teams out there today, they worked hard and gave everything and wanted to win the game."

The victory sends Weymouth into the next round of the Dorset Senior Cup, with attention now turning to Saturday's FA Trophy encounter against Hampton & Richmond Borough.