Cutting edge at

THE Hatters came through a potentially tricky Trophy tie at Lancaster City’s Giant Axe ground to win the first competitive match between the two sides since legendary County striker Alf Lythgoe netted the only goal of an FA Cup-tie in Lancaster during 1933/34.

Two first-half goals from leading scorer Jason Oswell and from midfielder Gary Stopforth, together with a late strike by substitute Bohan Dixon, got them through and into Monday’s Second Round draw.

But they had to withstand a concerted attacking effort after the break, as their Evo-Stik Premier Division hosts – under the captaincy of ex-County midfielder Craig Carney – rallied after putting away a penalty early in the second half.

County took to the field on a clear winter’s day with an unchanged lineup from that which had taken to the field at Edgeley Park against Spennymoor Town a week previously – and wearing the black and white alternate kit in which the team had been unbeaten on the last three occasions of use.

The Hatters, currently plying their trade one tier above the home side, dominated possession during the tie’s early stages, albeit without creating any chances in the final third.

And as it turned out, Lancaster had the first scoring opportunity after 19 minutes – but a hook shot from lone striker Steve Williams cleared the County crossbar following a deflection off Michael Clarke.

Seven minutes later, County went ahead. Dan Cowan’s pin-point perfect cross from the right was headed into the near topright of the net by Oswell for his 21st goal in all competitions.

And seven minutes from the break, the advantage was doubled. Home goalkeeper, and a former member of County’s development squad, Josh Powell, attempted to clear a back-pass from his area – only to watch with horror as the ball bobbled over his foot and Stopforth seized on the error to round Powell and slot home from the left.

Powell went some way towards redeeming his earlier mistake shortly after the interval when he parried a point-blank header from Darren Stephenson. And things really began to look up for

‘I thought it was a good group effort. We looked pretty strong in the first half’ – Jim Gannon

the hosts after 54 minutes, when they were awarded a spot-kick for an off-theball challenge by Oswell.

Winder, who seconds earlier had entered the fray as Lancaster’s first substitute, stepped up to convert past Ben Hinchliffe from 12 yards with his first touch of the ball.

And the goal clearly spurred on the hosts, as they made two further attacking changes in an attempt to salvage the tie.

Hinchliffe had to be at his best in denying later efforts from Williams and Winder – and his fellow defenders also stood firm to help retain County’s lead, before Dixon’s deflected low drive from 20 yards at the end of normal time ensured a place for the Hatters in the Second Round draw.

County manager Jim Gannon was understandably pleased with his team’s performance, enthusing: “I thought it was a good group effort.

“We looked pretty strong in the first half, and then changed our shape