TOP MARC CARVES UP NUN WITH SOLO GEM

CHORLEY 1 NUNEATON T 0

A SUPERB solo goal by Marcus Carver a minute before half-time proved enough to keep Chorley among the promotion chasers.

The hosts were good value for the win, denying Nuneaton any chance to equalise en route to their tenth clean sheet of the season.

The visitors were left to rue a glaring first-half miss by Jordan Nicholson, who was set to finish off an incisive left-wing move but, with only Shaun Rowley to beat, screwed his shot wide.

In truth, Nuneaton had been living dangerously from the start, with the Magpies piling forward and forcing a trio of early corners.

Christian Dibble pulled off a reflex save to turn over a fierce shot from Dale Whitham from Carver’s inviting low centre and, from the corner, Whitham saw his shot headed off the line.

Nuneaton knocked the ball around intelligently but failed to test Rowley and the Magpies had ten corners before Carver burst through the middle from halfway, shrugged off two defenders and cracked a shot past the helpless Dibble.

Chorley were close to a second goal when Jason Walker’s header across the back of the box teed up Jake Cottrell whose drive flew high.

The nearest Nuneaton came to a leveller was an angled snap-shot from James Clifton which flew beyond the far post.