New era sets off in winning style
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THE journey through the Non-League pyramid began in earnest for phoenix club Macclesfield FC on Saturday as they rose from the ashes to awaken an exciting fresh start.
The Silkmen’s eagerly anticipated first game since local businessman Robert Smerthurst saved them from extinction began on a positive note as they started their campaign in the North West Counties League, the ninth tier of English football, with a 1-0 win against Burscough FC before a vibrant crowd at the Moss Rose.
The first competitive goalscorer for the newly formed club went to Leon Arnasalam after a devastating 16th minute counter attack.
Head coach and player Danny Whitaker almost sealed the win late on, but his effort was well saved, denying the icing on the cake of a good opening performance. After the game, Whitaker was lost for words after his team’s historic day and memorable win. He said: “There’s so many emotions, it’s been a long time coming this day, hasn’t it? So to get the three points is all that mattered at the end of the day, that was the main objective and we’ve done that so I’m absolutely delighted.”
Whitaker went on to touch on the fans and how they played their part on a special day for the club.
He said: “I thought the fans were amazing, absolutely amazing and I thought the lads put in a real shift which is all we asked for.”
He admitted though that was massive pressure and expectations on the Silkmen to get off to a winning start.
He said: “Oh massive [pressure], I mean the majority of those players in there have not played in front of a crowd like this in their careers and to experience that in itself is big enough. So to come through that and get the three points is all that matters at the end of the day.”
Speaking about the first official goal scored by Macclesfield FC, Whitaker was pleased with the quality of it.
He said: “It was brilliant, I mean we’ve done that {in} pre-season where we’ve won first contact, won second contact and then we’re away.”
His side could have been comfortably ahead by the interval had they taken more chances, but Whitaker said: “Obviously that’s football. You get chances, some you take, some you don’t, but to be winning by halftime, that’s what we wanted.”
Despite not taking some further chances in the second period, Macclesfield were able to secure a historic 1-0 win, an important three points for confidence going forward.
The Silkmen were scheduled to travel to Winsford Town on Tuesday night at the Barton Stadium before their FA Cup journey begins at the weekend, as they once again host Burscough at the Leasing.Com Stadium.