Thrilling start to
COUNTY got their National League North season off to a winning start in a dramatically late 4-3 win over ten-man Alfreton at Edgeley Park on Saturday.
After The Hatters had squandered a two goal lead to be drawn level by Nicky Law’s spirited visitors, substitute Gary Stopforth skilfully volleyed home a stoppage time winner to ensure Jim Gannon’s men took maximum points from the season’s curtain raiser.
The late victory signalled a second opening day win in a row for County, after besting Boston Utd last year in a hardfought 2-1 win – and this season’s introductory act would prove to follow a similar pattern to the triumph over the Pilgrims, with Gannon’s new-look side being pegged back after early dominance, before sealing a late three points.
No fewer than seven debutants featured for the hosts, with many supporters heralding the arrival of AFC Fylde forward Danny Lloyd as the addition of a real danger man for The Hatters.
Lloyd started alongside last season’s top goalscorer John Marsden, with both forwards flanking returning target man Kay Odejayi, who did enough to convince boss Gannon to award the 33 year-old with a new deal over the summer.
Lloyd’s former Fylde teammate Ben Hinchliffe started in goal, whilst former Chorley duo Mark Ross – the new club captain at Edgeley Park – and Courtney Meppen-Walter both featured in the starting eleven. Midfielder Stopforth, signed from new boys Salford City, settled for a place on the bench as defender Michael Clarke passed a late fitness test, causing a reshuffle in personnel and formation for Gannon.
Pre-season saw a mixed bag of results for County, but much of the slick attacking play which featured in those friendlies became prominent early on against perennially tough opposition, with Lloyd and Marsden proving to be a dynamic attacking duo – and it would be the lively Lloyd who opened the scoring, and his Hatters account, less than five minutes in.
Hinchliffe searched for Odejayi directly from the goal kick, but defender Niall Heaton’s miscalculated headed clearance skewed back towards his own goal, and the alert Lloyd found himself clean through on goal to clip deftly over Fabien Spiess in the Town goal.
Under the stewardship of both Neil Young and Gannon last season, a common criticism of The Hatters was a lack of goals, with one of the lowest scoring records in the division. That statistic improved under Gannon at the back end of the campaign, with Marsden helping himself to 9 in all competitions – and the summer signing of Lloyd, with 60 goals in three seasons at Fylde to his name, will surely boost that column.
And it was Marsden who was next to register his first of the season, meeting Odejayi’s intelligent flick-on from a Scott Duxbury long throw to rifle past Spiess.
Gannon’s excitinglooking side were rampant, and Marsden found himself through on goal after a back-heel from the energetic Sam Minihan shortly after, but the effort was saved before man-ofthe-match Lewis Montrose’s strike on the rebound smashed against the upright and away to safety.
But Alfreton soon fired a warning shot of things to come as they finally came into the game ten minutes prior to the interval with a short burst of pressure, with captain Dan Bradley firstly drawing a brilliant save from Hinchliffe, before flashing a direct