Point lifts Brent’s boys into top five
BACUP Borough made the short trip down the M66 to Chadderton and managed to come back with a valuable point that would be enough to take them into the top five of the North West Counties League Division One North.
Borough were coming into the game full of confidence off the back of a 5-1 victory over Pilkington and showing real signs of hitting form just at the right time.
As for opponents Chadderton, they had seen an indifference in form with only two wins from their last eleven games – but one of those being against Borough back in mid October.
It was the hosts who set off the brighter of the two sides with excellent link up play down both wings and Chadderton could have taken the lead within four minutes with right back Joseph Richards hitting the post with a powerful shot from the edge of the area.
Chadderton continued to press the Borough in the opening encounters and another effort on nine minutes fell to Ethan Sutcliffe who could only put his effort agonisingly over the crossbar.
As the game progressed, so did Borough. On 28 minutes Kyle Siddle had a fantastic opportunity to give Borough the lead.
A mistake at the back and a sloppy pass from the Chadderton goalkeeper fell into the path of Siddle in a central position on the edge of the area, but instead keeping his composure he opted to go for power which saw the ball fly over the crossbar.
Borough were growing in confidence and we were starting to see the real value of this young side.
The link up play was more precise and quicker out of their feet, and the game was end to end with both teams having equal proportion of possession.
On 32 minutes the Borough keeper Harry Turner made a fantastic save with his feet to deny Ethan Sutcliffe, and from the resulting rebound Borough defender Daniel Warren put everything on line to block a Chadderton shot from five yards out.
The home side continued to probe in the final third with excellent running from Aaron Scholes, son of former Manchester United legend Paul Scholes, but at half time Borough would’ve been the happy of the two sides going in level.
Whatever had been said at half time in the Borough dressing room definitely seemed to work because within two minutes of the restart they had taken the lead.
Excellent interception by Ryan Siddle just inside the Borough half, he was then able to pick out Alex Mellor operating down the right wing who then brought the ball in on his favoured left foot, and from 20 yards out Mellor curled a sublime shot beyond Saijad Suliaman in the Chadderton goal.
It was a fantastic reaction and one celebrated in the Borough technical area by Brent Peters and David Felgate.
Conceding that goal certainly didn’t dampen the spirits of the home side because they continued to cause Borough problems.
The midfield pairing of Christopher Pauley and Jordan Rutter were constantly getting on the ball and linking up with the forwards.
Pauley seemed to be the one asking the vast majority of Chadderton’s questions, and if anybody was going to get the home side back into this then it would be him.
On 67 minutes we witnessed the save of the match from Borough’s Harry Turner. A brilliant struck shot from Pauley
from the edge of the penalty area came through a crowd of players and somehow Turner was able to get down quick to his right hand side and parry away with a strong right hand.
A save of excellent quality by a goalkeeper that increases his stock everytime he takes to the field.
Chadderton could sense blood and made two substitutions in the space of five minutes. Cory Knight was introduced for Ethan Sutcliffe, and Adam Dale for Aaron Scholes, and it
definitely made a difference.
They continued to probe down the wings with the full backs Richards and Dean firing balls into the Borough box. Equally we were seeing cavalier defending from Joey Fallon and Daniel Warren who blocked anything that moved. With all that pressure you just sensed that it was only a matter of time before the home side would get themselves level.
On 83 minutes that goal came. The ball broke on the edge of the Borough
penalty area, and waiting to pounce was midfielder Christopher Pauley, he drove a left footed shot hard and low through a crowd of players and beyond Turner into the left hand corner, a goal on reflection that the home side deserved.
There was another opportunity for both sides to snatch a win with half chances in the latter stages but match referee Emily Carney brought the game to a close on what was another excellent spectacle for the North West Counties League.
That draw now takes Borough into 5th place equal on points with AFC Blackpool. Borough now face Ashton Town away on Saturday, followed by three consecutive home fixtures.
They play Garstang FC on Tuesday 18th January, Campion FC on Saturday 22nd and Golcar United on Saturday 29th.
Meanwhile, Toby Wright and Callum Hewitt have extended their contracts at the club until 2024.
There are plans in place for other players to follow in the coming weeks as Peters moves forward with ambitions beyond this campaign.