Ashton Athletic 4 v 5 Vauxhall Motors

A massive game approached for McGraa’s side, with the Motormen looking to build on a first win on Tuesday evening, with a 1-0 win against Litherland Remyca, thanks to a last-minute winner courtesy of a Joe Brandon strike. Changes to the starting eleven from Tuesday’s win, including Kyle Scarasbrick, Greg Drummond and Kyle Smyth left out of the team, with Simon Thelwell, Ben Holmes and Richie Foulkes brought back in to McGraa’s side.

A slow start for the Motormen force Mikey Dixon into two saves early on, with a slippy ball sliding quickly to force Dixon down to his right side and comfortably keeps the game at 0-0. Once the Motormen got into the game, 4 minutes in, Haydn Cooper is threaded through and smashed the ball from an angle into the left post which bounced straight back into the goal to put the Motormen 1 up.

Just two minutes later, a ball was passed through towards Tuesday’s Man of the Match, Joe Brandon, and cut inside and curled the ball into the back post to make it two goals in two games, for the same type of goal as the match-winning goal, which was scored against Litherland Remyca on Tuesday evening, to put the Motormen 2 up in 6 minutes.

After a good ten minutes, the ball was hit, against the run of play, and was fizzed in at Vauxhalls’ keeper, Mikey Dixon, where the ball was hit and goes straight through Dixon’s hands to grab a goal back for Ashton Athletic.

Just over halfway through the second half, a chance for Ashton resulted in an equaliser, with a goal for the yellows by Joe Nicholson. The Motormen hit back just five minutes later, with another goal from Joe Brandon, which was a thunder strike from 18 yards to put the Motormen back ahead.

9 minutes later, Ashton Athletic hit back, with a shot straight at Dixon parried, and the rebound is scored by Bandell, before just three minutes later, just on the stroke of half time, Ashton took the lead for the first time in the game to put the hosts 3-2 ahead.

A quiet second half for the first ten minutes, before a ‘ghost goal’! Ben Holmes was threaded through, and hit the ball from an incredible angle, with the ball seeming to go wide of the post, but the ball was in the goal! The referee gave the decision our way, with the goal being given to the Motormen, before being chalked off again due to a hole being discovered by the referee in the side netting of the goal. After a good five minutes of checking this out and re-threading the goal net, we were back underway!

McGraa made three substitutions within five minutes, with Kyle Smyth, Leo Riley and Kieran Knapper coming on the field for Anthony Gardner, Joe Levey, and Richie Foulkes. Massive impacts from Kieran Knapper, with Knapper running down the wing and drawing fouls alongside making chances for the Motormen.

Just three minutes after the substitutions, Leo Riley got a chance from the edge of the box and pinged it towards the goal from 18 yards which the keeper fumbled on the wet ground and spilt into the goal, for the Motormen to equalise and Riley to score his first goal for the club.

Just five minutes after the equaliser, Leo Riley got another chance and hit the ball to score a brace and put the Motormen in the lead! 5-4!

9 minutes before the final whistle, a bad challenge and a bad reaction from the Ashton Athletic player put the hosts down to ten men, with a sending off for number eleven, Millen Brown.

Towards the end of the game, chances were created and a solid performance at left back from Joe Heath all game, especially towards the last ten minutes, ensured the Motormen kept the lead to see out the match!