JACK AND JON BASH MAGPIES
HARROGATE Town boss Simon Weaver saluted his troops for a ‘professional’ away display after they cruised to victory over a Chorley side lacking any sort of cutting edge and looking short of confidence.
Goals from Jack Muldoon and veteran Jon Stead earned Town the spoils.
Weaver applauded a “structured, patient, professional away performance” and in truth they were a class apart against a struggling home side.
Had Town taken two more clear-cut scoring chances in the second half, the winning margin would have been at least doubled.
“We took our goals well and they came at the right time,” added Weaver. “I thought our front two ran the Chorley defence ragged.”
A relatively low-key first half saw Chorley show early promise, Alex Newby havble ing a 20-yard drive charged down and Marcus Carver firing straight at James Belshaw from 25 yards.
But it was Harrogate who struck decisively on 27 minutes. A lofted forward ball sent Muldoon racing for goal down the right channel. Keeper Matt Urwin looked undecided as to whether to come out and Muldoon took full advantage with an expert finish low into the far corner.
As Chorley hit back quickly, Carver brought a great near post save from Belshaw.
Urwin rescued Chorley with two quick-thinking saves after the break, following the second of which Jack Diamond ought to have tucked away the rebound, his shot being deflected for a corner.
Calamitous defending then gifted possession to Stead, who cleverly tucked the ball beyond Urwin from the tightest of angles to douthe lead on 67 minutes.
Urwin vigilantly snuffed out another quick breakaway, saving smartly from Lloyd Kerry low down at his near post. The Magpies finally got a second half effort on target with five minutes to play, substitute Ntumba Massanka’s header being palmed aside by Belshaw.
There was still time for the livewire Stead to threaten a third goal. His wellplaced low cross-shot was pushed onto the post by Urwin, Muldoon astonishingly ballooning the loose ball over the bar from five yards.
But it was all academic. Harrogate had already stamped their class on a game they won with increasing authority.
Chorley manager Jamie Vermiglio said: “We did well for the first 20 minutes but Harrogate were organised, ruthless and didn’t make any mistakes. We need to improve quickly to give ourselves a realistic chance of survival.”