By Lewie Tilley, photos by Jonathan White
A penalty from Byron Harrison in the fifth minute of the game was the difference between Nantwich Town and Newcastle Town as the Dabbers ended Newcastle’s seven-game unbeaten run.
Luke Goddard made two changes coming into this game as Perry Bircumshaw and Joe Robbins made their way into the starting eleven replacing James Baillie and Paddy Jarrett.
Neil Baker’s men came into this game having beaten Chasetown 1-0 at home, a win that saw them go five points clear of the relegation zone with a few games in hand over the bottom four.
After conceding very early on against Trafford last time out, Nantwich would grab their own early opener as Joe Slinn tripped Harrison inside the box, earning the penalty he would go on to score.
Ex-Nantwich winger Harry Bower should’ve equalised against his former side after rounding Ben Garratt, beating the goalkeeper to a long ball, although his effort found the side netting with the goal wide open.
Joel Connolly almost put the ball on a plate for Harrison to double the lead after driving up the right wing, but his curling cross was just too high for the striker.
Newcastle looked to catch the Nantwich defence out with a short corner that left room for Joe Hunter to strike from the edge of the box, but Garratt did well to react and save the shot coming through multiple bodies.
After a tense first half with limited chances, the Dabbers’ Byron duo linked up as strong hold up play from Harrison set up Moore to strike, his side-footed effort flew just wide of the left post.
Joel Jones, Newcastle’s top scorer this year, almost came up with something special as he chested down a long ball before volleying towards the top left corner, but Garratt was on hand again to palm away the danger.
The second half became a lot more tense and cagey as it went on, with the momentum of the game swinging both ways as Nantwich continued to hold a tight lead after the first half.
With both managers looking to roll the dice in their favour, both teams made multiple changes with Nantwich utilising their whole bench. Paddy Jarrett was introduced and almost put the game to bed after he drove a low shot across the box, which Slinn managed to save and clear.
Newcastle’s chances of taking anything from the game were completely lost in injury time after they were reduced to ten men as Josh Bowden saw red for a high-footed challenge on Paddy Kennedy.
With this their 14th win of the season, the Dabbers move up to 9th in the table on 47 points, whilst also pushing their goal difference back to zero.
Nantwich Town’s next fixture sees the Dabbers take on Lower Breck at the Anfield Sport and Community Centre on Saturday 14th March.
Teams
Nantwich Town: Ben Garratt, Aidy Roxburgh, Perry Bircumshaw (James Baillie, 82), Joe Robbins (Callum Saunders, 62), Ben Hockenhull, Paddy Kennedy, Alex Panter, Fenton Green (Joe Collins, 82), Byron Harrison (Paddy Jarrett, 82), Joel Connolly (C), Byron Moore (Adam Rooney, 72)
Goal: Harrison (5, pen)
Newcastle Town: Joe Slinn (C), Cameron Dourish (Jerry Ugue, 82), Oliver Ritchie, Ethan Vale, Lewis Brown, Karsten Cairns, Joe Hunter, William Arnold (Josh Bowden, 69), Joel Jones (Roman Allen, 69), Tom Jones (Tim Grice, 76), Harry Bower
Sub not used: Scott Johnston
Red card: Bowden (90+3)
Attendance: 422