VICTORY REWARD ELUDES AMMIES
SALFORD CITY 0 HARROGATE TN 0
HARROGATE TOWN took their first point in six outings after an often dour encounter at a chilly Moor Lane.
Salford Ciy hadn’t been in the best of form themselves over recent weeks so perhaps it was no surprise that the first half was a largely disjointed affair.
The home side went close on 18 minutes when Matt Warburton’s 20-yard effort took a deflection, but Town keeper Peter Crook adjusted his feet to pull off a good save.
Harrogate’s best effort during the opening half came seven minutes later when Joe Colbeck’s angled effort from the right was tipped around the far post by Salford keeper Jay Lynch.
Wayne Brooksby headed straight at Lynch from Joe Leesley’s cross eight minutes before the interval, the last incident of note provided by an uninspiring half.
Salford forced the pace from the restart and Mike Phenix’s low effort from the left passed a foot wide of the far post. Soon after, Jack Deaman headed Michael Nottingham’s cross straight at Crook and Richie Allen fired high over the bar as the hosts cranked up the pressure.
Town were forced to defend but did so well and Salford had to wait until just past the hour mark for their next opportunity.
Warburton turned a pass from the left into the path of debutant Nick Haughton, whose powerful 22-yard shot cleared the bar by less than a foot.
Salford were on top but never managed to exert consistent pressure, although with 12 minutes left Nottingham hammered in a drive from the right that Crook did well to parry.
In attacking terms, the
game lacked genuine quality but Haughton, on loan from League One Fleetwood Town, bucked that trend with eight minutes left. A twisting run took him to the left-hand edge of the box where he spun to lift an ambitious chip that dropped over the crossbar.
Having sat back for virtually all of the second half, Town pushed forward late on and Brooksby’s shot from Chib Chilaba’s cross was blocked. But conceding a goal late on would have been harsh on Salford, who were left to rue two points dropped.
Assistant manager Bernard Morley summed the game up succinctly by saying: “We couldn’t have done much more, apart from put the ball in the net.
“We dictated the game during the second half but that vital bit of luck was missing. There we some good individual performances and we take plenty of encouragement from this display”.