BIZARRE OWN GOAL HELPS
NANTWICH TOWN reached the second round of the FA Trophy with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Grantham Town at the Optimum Pay Stadium.
The Dabbers began the game on the front foot and Joel Stair and Dan Cockerline both went close before they opened the scoring in the 10th minute.
A low corner from David Webb was swept into the net by Sean Cooke giving keeper Jim Pollard no chance.
Cooke then had a free-kick tipped over by Pollard, but Grantham drew level totally against the run of play in the 21st minute.
Lee Shaw won the ball in midfield and raced forward in space to steer a shot past Andrew Wycherley.
Both sides had chances to take the lead after that but Nantwich won it in the 66th minute in bizarre fashion.
A long ball was headed back to the Grantham keeper by defender Henry Eze, who didn’t realise that Pollard had strayed forward and so the ball looped into the empty net for an own goal.
Nantwich ended the game with 10 men as Webb was sent off in time added on after picking up two yellow cards in six minutes. Nantwich also receive £3,000 in prize money.
KIDSGROVE ATHLETIC made it back-to-back Northern Premier League West Division victories with a 2-1 home win against City of Liverpool FC.
John Johnston had a shot well saved before Grove broke the deadlock two minutes before the interval.
Oli Hickman sent over a cross to the far post and Callum Lovatt headed home his first goal for the club. The visitors levelled in the 65th minute when Jack Hazlehurst turned in the box and fired the ball across Ryan Brown and into the far corner.
Grove took the points eight minutes from time. Anthony Malbon flicked the ball on to Kieran Brown and he laid it off for Johnston to bend it past Danny Taberner.
Former LEEK TOWN and later Port Vale favourite Mark Bright officially opened their new 3G facilities before more than 800 fans witnessed a 1-1 draw with local rivals NEWCASTLE TOWN.
It was Castle who opened the scoring in the 27th minute when Nathan Morley burst clear to drill the ball past Danny Roberts.
Leek equalised three minutes into the second half when good work from Dan Trickett-smith led to Tim Grice notching his 10th goal of the season.
Leek had the best of the chances from then on, but Owen Mooney made some good saves to earn his side a point.
HANLEY TOWN remain top of the Midland League Premier Division following a 4-0 home victory over Stourport Swifts.
Hanley went in front three minutes before the interval when Carl Dickinson played a good through-ball to Jake Avery in space and he steered it past keeper Dom Richards for his 10th goal of the season but his first for Hanley, the other nine coming for Uttoxeter Town.
Hanley were having most of the play and they doubled their lead in the 56th minute.
Avery went past a defender in the area and put the ball across where Tim Sanders slid it into the net.
Player-manager Dickinson picked up his second assist of the day in the 76th minute when another clinical ball sent Chris Dagnall clear and he made no mistake.
Dagnall had the ball in the net in the 87th minute only to be denied by an offside flag, but 60 seconds later he did get his second of the game with a shot into the corner of the net.
Afterwards Dickinson said: “I think that was the most chances we have created in a game so far this season.
“We could have scored more but I am really pleased with four goals and a clean sheet, I don’t think Kieran Harrison had a shot to save.”
STONE OLD ALLEYNIANS also had a good home win, 4-1 against Tividale at King’s Park.
Stone opened the scoring in the 16th minute when a corner led to player-manager Luke Askey firing home.
The visitors drew level seven minutes before the break when a Jason Wood cross was headed over Adam Alcock by Elliott Hartley.
Dave Ablewhite thought he had restored Stone’s lead in the 40th minute until he saw the linesman’s raised flag for offside.
Sam Bradbury did put Stone back in front in the 50th minute when he stroked home a right-wing cross.
Sam Wilson then also had two goals disallowed for offside as Stone dominated play. Dave Ablewhite made it 3-1 in the 78th minute when he coolly slotted past keeper Niall Maher.
Two minutes later leading scorer Ablewhite headed home from a free-kick for his ninth goal of the season and his sixth in the last six games.
It was an afternoon to forget for UTTOXETER TOWN as they were walloped 9-0 at a Lichfield City side who are just two points behind Hanley at the top of the table.
Max Dixon opened the scoring with Lichfield’s first attack and Jack Edwards doubled the lead two minutes later.
The writing was on the wall for Uttoxeter when Dixon made it 3-0 with just 10 minutes gone on the clock.
Edwards then hit the post before finding the net in the 25th minute and two minutes later it was 5-0 as Joe Haines’ free-kick was deflected past the overworked Jack Tolley.
Tom Brown hit the bar and Tolley made a good save before a sixth goal came courtesy of Chandler Pegg in the 55th minute.
Haines and Pegg both scored their second goals before Edwards completed his hat-trick in the final minute with his team’s ninth.
IN North West Counties League Division One South, BROCTON produced a remarkable late finish to defeat ALSAGER TOWN 2-1 at Silkmore Lane with two very late goals to record successive victories.
The Bullets took the lead in the sixth minute when George West headed home his eighth goal of the season and his sixth in the last six games.
It looked as though the points were going to Alsager, but the Badgers hit back very late with two goals in time added on from Alex Curtis and substitute Cameron Jackson.
ECCLESHALL made it two wins out of three with a 3-2 victory over Cheadle Town at Pershall Park.
Cheadle took the lead in the
29th minute. Paul Sunderland had a shot parried by debutant keeper Eric Merner but was on hand to make no mistake from the rebound.
Four minutes later the Eagles were level when Luke Lewis set up Liam Tomlin and he scored with a shot into the corner of the net.
Jordan Hall had a shot cleared off the line as Eccleshall pressed and they went in front three minutes into the second half.
Again it was good work by Lewis who evaded several tackles before squaring the ball to Tomlin, and he fired the ball into the top corner.
Cheadle restored parity in the 54 th minute when Sunderland crashed a free-kick directly into the net.
The game was then end to end but it was Eccleshall who won it in the 79th minute. Tomlin sent over a cross and although Elliott Wynne tipped the original goalbound effort into the bar, Jack Dundas thumped the loose ball into the net.
STAFFORD TOWN remain eighth in the table after a 1-1 draw at Cheadle Heath Nomads.
Stafford opened the scoring in the 12th minute when a cross by Nathan Scott was turned home by Declan Arber, who scored his fourth goal in three games since joining the club.
The Nomads were level a minute
before the break when a scramble in the box was inadvertently diverted into the net by a defender.
ROCESTER went close to a point away to the division’s leading scorers, FC Isle of Man, but eventually lost 2-1.
The home side were awarded a penalty in the 17th minute after a push on Luke Murray and Jack Mcvey scored the spot-kick.
Romans keeper Charlie Woods made some good saves to keep his side in it and Lee Gale and Sean Doyle both hit the post in the same attack.
The Islanders added a second goal four minutes into the second half when a Gale cross was headed home by Doyle for his 24th goal of the season.
Woods kept up his man of the match display but the Isle of Man were reduced to 10 men in the 68th minute when Gale was shown a red card for an off-the-ball offence.
Three minutes later Rocester had a penalty of their own after a foul by Ryan Burns and Cavan Holford silenced the 2,100 crowd by making the score 2-1.
Rocester began to have more of the ball but they were also reduced to 10 men in the 88th minute when Rory Regan received his second yellow card and the home side hung on for their fifth successive win.
ABBEY HULTON UNITED went down 2-1 at Wythenshawe Amateurs.
Wythenshawe took the lead in the 50th minute when Saul Henderson converted a penalty. Abbey Hulton were level in the 78th minute when a cross led to Fitzroy Butler heading past Kyle Haslam.
Just as the game was petering out into a draw Wythenshawe won it two minutes from time. Dylan Walker sent over a cross from the right and Henderson rose the highest to power home the winner.
SANDBACH UNITED are now four games without a win following a 4-0 defeat at New Mills.
The home side opened the scoring after just 90 seconds. A corner from Daz Mcknight was turned into the net by Benito Lowe.
Mcknight was also credited with the assist for the second goal in the 15th minute, when his throughball led to Teddy Osipitan finding the net. Sandbach hit back when a cross from Kallam Boyle was tipped over the bar by Dylan Forth.
Sandbach had a number of chances and Forth made another good save, this time from Jack Hart.
On the hour mark it was 3-0 though when Rick Tindall set up Osipitan to score his second.
Five minutes later New Mills scored a fourth goal. Jack Wray had a shot parried by Danny Hamlett but Tindall smashed the rebound into the net from six yards.