Bruce off on right foot with home win
ADEMANDING victory for Macclesfield saw Alex Bruce’s welcome to the Leasing.com Stadium result in a 2-1 win over Whitby Town.
John Rooney’s opener was paired with a penalty conversion from Alex Curran to cancel out the threat of Junior Mondal’s first-half strike for the visitors and earn the Silkmen all three points.
Bruce named a completely unchanged side to the XI that were victorious on the road to Marske United previously.
Due to the Whitby team coach having been caught in heavy traffic on the way to the Leasing.com Stadium, kick-off was delayed until 15.30.
The first chance of the game saw Neil Kengni burst down the right flank in trademark fashion before squaring it behind for Paul Dawson, but a first-time effort from the midfielder flew high over the bar and into the Star Lane End.
A huge chance for Macc then followed after Kengni was set free once again before sliding it through for Rooney, whose driven effort was narrowly turned behind despite catching Curran on the way.
Whitby then came forward down the left through Mondal, but his conclusive effort couldn’t quite reach the goalmouth after Dawson tenaciously threw himself in front of the strike.
Not long after, Macc were able to open the scoring. Rooney picked up possession inside the area and, despite being under pressure by the Whitby defence, disguised an initial effort with a drag-back, allowing him the desired space to curl a side-footed effort into the bottom-left corner and give his side the lead.
However, circumstances only worsened for the Seasiders after Harrison Beeden’s late challenge inside the area was at fault for giving away a penalty, causing Kengni to fall to the floor, abruptly.
It was Curran who took on the responsibility of taking the penalty, stepping up and drilling a low effort into the bottom right corner in front of the Silkmen supporters to double their lead.
But just two minutes later, Whitby were able to pull one back. A dangerous ball into the area was taken down by substitute Connor Simpson who squared it into the centre on the half-turn, allowing Mondal to connect with the ball first-time and mid-sprint, burying it far past the reach of Dylan Berry.
The final effort of the first-half saw Dawson set up for an effort from distance, but could only drive the shot into the palms of Bland.
The game restarted with an immediate chance for the Silks to restore their two goal lead, after Kengni’s half-volley from the right was dragged just wide.
This was followed up by a piece of excellence from Rooney, who intelligently flicked on Kengni’s initial pass, setting Dawson free beyond the Whitby backline but a strong stop from the foot of Bland kept his side’s deficit minimal, with Luke Duffy’s rebounded effort curling wide.
Amid a very dangerous spell of play, Macc came forward again with Kengni being at the heart of it once more.
The Macclesfield number 7 beat his man for pace before drilling it across the face of goal, with Curran just inches away from sliding onto the end of it.
Macc’s first change involved the introduction of James Hardy, who came on to replace goalscorer Rooney.
The game then entered a state of disarray, with its commotion causing the run of play to come to a standstill.
Jacob Gratton’s volley into the area was redirected into the six-yard area by the head of Beeden, allowing Adam Gell to poke the ball as to what appeared to be over the line, but during celebrations from both fans and players, it became evident that neither the referee or the linesman shared this belief.
As the game settled down, Macc made a double change which saw
Curran and Brandon Lee make way for Alex Hurst and Freddie Sass respectively.
The Silks played out the clock having survived a late scare, causing Whitby to suffer defeat on the road for the first time this season.
Macc’s next challenge sees them return to FA Trophy action, where they will travel away from home to face Alfreton Town in the Second Round.