Rangers continue good run
The Lair were prompted to seek a switch of venue to opponents Sutton Fields Rangers home pitch at Bude Road, which had been declared playable, in order to ensure that the game could go ahead.
The Premier Division game was very even and entertaining fare between two sides who play neat football, and Sutton Fields went ahead with a goal from Rob Brockwell.
As a result, the game seemed to be going well until Rangers' keeper Smith handled the ball outside his area, an offence which referee Bill Pharoah deemed worthy of a red card.
Rangers' remaining players showed determination and character to retain their advantage, and so much so that they put the game further beyond The Liar's reach when substitute Chris Richardson sent a screaming left foot shot into the top corner of the net, allowing Rangers to improve on what has been a stuttering start to the season.
When AFC Preston began the season with a scoreless draw against Quaddy Rangers, it appeared likely that they were making their usual slow start.
The first game, however, is never a true indication of what is to come, and as the two sides now lie in first and third position in the league table, it was, in hindsight – for both – a good result.
A second game defeat for Preston did not bode well, but suddenly the side has hit form, and four successive wins has catapulted the team up the league ladder.
The latest win, against Swiss Cottage RBL ended with a 2-1 scoreline – the third time this season that Swiss have finished on the wrong end of the tightest of results.
Preston went into the game full of confidence and started the stronger, immediately putting the Swiss defence under pressure, but Preston suffered an early blow with the loss of defender and skipper Simon Matson, who was replaced by the more than capable John Cross, and the transition proved largely seamless.
Preston took the game to their spirited opponents, but were thwarted by the good form and saves of Swiss keeper John Scott until the 20th minute when Matty Hartley used his speed and precision to take the ball in his stride and slide it home past the advancing keeper.
Continued pressure brought the reward of corners for Preston, and the aerial threat of Cross and Darren Wilson caused problems for Swiss, and it was from a knock down by Wilson that Matty Hartley scored his second goal, volleying from six yards and giving the Swiss defence and keeper, no chance.
Preston had many more chances in the first half, including Wilson having a superb header cleared from the line, and Swiss keeper Scott continued to pull off some outstanding saves.
Conversely, Shaun Scotthorne had a great chance to pull one back for Swiss only to see, in role reversal, Preston keeper Rob Wilkinson make a great save diving to his right.
Not for the first time this season, the half- time break provided the opportunity for Swiss to re-group, and began to turn the game around, becoming a more dominant outfit.
Swiss created chances but some shoddy final passes and an effective Preston rearguard meant no reward was earned until, on the hour, a looping header from Ben Bassett left the Preston custodian watching the ball drop into an open net.
Swiss followed this with some nice one touch football down the right to open up the Preston defence, and a square ball from Bassett to Shaun Scotthorne found the attacker unmarked on the edge of the area but his resulting shot disappointingly went wide of the target.
Swiss limited Preston to just two shots on goal in the second half and if they had played that way in the first half the result would have been a lot different.
As it was, the remainder of the game was a little nervy for Preston but their experienced heads pulled them through for another win.
Preston are hoping the forecasted and impending bad weather does not affect their current run of form.
The weather was never going to have any bearing on AFC Hull's game against Quaddy Rangers on the University 3G pitch, and the game got off to a fast pace with AFC Hull taking early control, and firing in several shots in the first 15 minutes of action, but Quaddy keeper Mark Foster was in top form and dealt with all that came his way.
AFC Hull took the lead when Dale Carty raced away from the half way line, leaving defenders in his wake, before sending a neat low shot past keeper Foster.
The old adage of teams being vulnerable after scoring proved accurate when moments later Quaddy's Duane Grantley attacked down the wing and his cross landed on the head of Dave Bettney who finished well, although Hull keeper Craig Lindley did get a good hand on the ball which still went in off the far post.
AFC Hull were having more of the ball than Quaddy who looked lost at times in the middle of the park, but the overall end-to-end pattern of the game continued with the hard working Mark Friston and Carty at the heart of the creativity in the AFC Hull midfield.
After 34 minutes AFC Hull regained the lead when Nathan Nuttall squared a ball to the six- yard box where centre back Jaimie Gascoigne crashed the ball home after which Quaddy keeper Foster continued to perform heroics and kept the score unchanged to the break.
The second half got under way with AFC Hull continuing were they left off, although lynchpin Jaimie Gascoigne had to be on hand after 65 minutes when Quaddy attacked and he headed the ball off the goal line.
The last 20 minutes of the game heralded the long awaited return of Quaddy's Danny Thompson and he provided the required boost the team required and within minutes a great finish from 10 yards and a tight angle by Simon Start brought the scores level.
Mike Newdick, who had occupied an unfamiliar defensive role in the game, took it upon himself to show Quaddy what they had been missing in attack, setting off on a mazy run before rifling in a shot to put his side in front.
With AFC Hull now forced to push on to rescue the game, space was left for Quaddy to exploit, and Louis Nagi accepted an opportunity when the ball fell at his feet after rebounding off the crossbar and he extended Quaddy's lead.
Quaddy rubbed salt into the wound against now dispirited opponents with a further goal which may be credited to Thompson, who sent in the shot, although Jamie Marshall claims he, somehow, made the final contact.
A failed postal delivery meant that the game between Division One leaders Goodwin and Paull Wanderers was left without an appointed official – a situation which could have been avoided – but nonetheless went ahead to produce a nine-goal thriller – though if Paull Wanderers had converted chances, they would have been out of sight.
Paull did not settle into the game very well in the first 10 minutes, but just after they seemed to get going, fell behind following a error by keeper Liam Smith, who came out for a ball but lost control under his feet and the Goodwin player slipped the ball past him and into the net.
Paull recovered from this unexpected setback within two minutes when Danny Wilbor found Terry Thompson at the back post, and matters improved even more when Wilbor created space for himself on the right and found Thompson again, who, running in one-on-one with the keeper, hit the net again.
Paull appeared to have taken a stranglehold on the game and the deadly duo immediately struck again – albeit fortuitously – when a wild Wilbor shot fell to Thompson at the back post and he tapped the ball home to complete his hat-trick.
Goodwin attacked straight from the re-start and pulled a goal back, but Paull then launched their counter offensive and really should have done better when a Karl Smith cross provided defender Chris Wilson with a free header in the box but it finished over the bar.
Goodwin would doubtless have been happy going in at 3-2 down at half-time, so it was beyond their wildest dream when in another quick attack a cross-cum-shot eluded Paull keeper Smith and sailed into the top corner off the goal.
A buoyant Goodwin attacked Paull from the restart and took an all-important lead within five minutes after Paull tried, and failed, to play the offside trap.
Paull drew level in the 68th minute when Tommy Donnelly hammered the ball in when he was found by a good Terry Thompson cross.
A penalty claim by Paull was denied in favour of a corner kick, but a goal did result - but from Goodwin who made quick counter attack, thus regaining the lead with only five minutes remaining.
Paull could still have pulled the game out of the fire but two clear chances were spurned by Wilbor and Paull had to swallow the bitter taste of defeat, whilst Goodwin wondered how they had secured a win.
Six of the best -shared equally was the report of the goals in the match between West Hull United and Cross Keys Cottingham, scored by two teams giving it all in an entertaining match.
Key's Wayne Kirk with an overhead kick started the scoring, and this was followed by a well-worked equaliser by West's Jamie Carr.
A fine individual goal, again by Kirk, restored Key's lead, but a peach of a volley by West Hull midfielder Shaun Welsh tied the scores through to half time.
The second half saw a fascinating contest in which West Hull took the lead for the first time following a well worked free kick and flick-on, the type which are impossible to defend, forced home by central defender Mark Bradford.
Keys peppered the West Hull goal in the final five minutes of the game and got their just rewards five minutes from time.
Orchard Park United and Kingston Tigers were both looking for their first points of the season in Division Two, and so something had to give, but it is encouraging that the match was notable for being an excellent contest, well refereed, played in a good spirit – and end-to-end as the final score underlines!
Orchard took the lead through Anthony Graham, but late starters Kingston Tigers pulled the goal back only for a double salvo from Graham and Ryan Prescot who restored Orchard into the driving seat through to the break.
Kingston were quickest out of the block after the break, pulling a goal back but another two responses from Orchard – Graham completing his hat-trick, and Ryan Longhorn – opened up an apparent match winning lead.
That was not Kingston's thinking, and they regrouped to score three times – to level the scores - and miss a penalty!
With less than a minute to go, the penalty miss proved crucial, as Gavin Cope scored the deciding goal for Orchard, securing their long awaited first win.
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