Arngrove Northern League
29 January 2008
Two in three makes one
by Ken Milgate

Durham City 2
Bowes 65
Johnston 68

Whitley Bay 2
Moore 7
Chow 41

Two goals down at half-time, City scored two in reply in the space of three minutes when Stewart Morris came on as substitute and set up both strikes with crosses from the right, the first within a minute of his participation.  A thoroughly entertaining game leaves City in pole position, their confidence boosted by a spirited second-half performance to salvage a point.

Despite enjoying an opening five minutes of attacking football down the right wing, City went behind when they failed to deal with a left-wing cross, allowing an unmarked Chris Moore time to beat John Mohan in the far bottom corner.

Three minutes later Mohan rescued City when he beat away a Paul Chow shot before Stephen Capper scorned a good chance with a ballooned drive from distance but central.

Steven Richardson had a goal disallowed for offside before Chow and Adam Johnston both sent efforts over the bar.

City came close to an equalizer on 37minutes when John Toft’s shot on goal ricocheted off a defender only for an unmarked Richardson to head over at the back post.

The miss proved costly four minutes later when Dean Douglas was allowed too much time on the ball as he menaced his way outside the penalty area before shooting for goal, his shot deflecting solidly enough off Chow for the latter to claim credit, the revised flight of the shot wrong-footing Mohan.

Two minutes into the second half Johnston’s left-wing cross had the visitors’ defence in disarray, but Richardson shot wide.

On the hour Moore forced a save from Mohan before City took off Ian Davison.

A determined right-wing run by Morris produced a cross and a deflection for a corner following Johnston’s hooked goal attempt, the ensuing Capper corner being headed home by Andy Bowes.

Three minutes later Johnston converted another Morris right-wing cross to put City on level terms.

With a quarter of an hour to go Bay made two tactical substitutions to guarantee their point, but they might have snatched all three but for a splendid reaction save by Mohan who saw Chow’s drive at the last moment and palmed it away for a corner as it was about to creep inside his near post.

Both sides made late substitutions to maintain status quo as far as the score was concerned rather than in an attempt to chase victory.

The match lived up to all expectations and City took full advantage of a slower-paced second period to maintain their challenge at the top.

Durham City – Mohan, Harrison, Davison (Morrison 61), Dodds, Bowes, Smith (R), Toft, Smith (C), Richardson (Stobbs 90), Johnston, Capper

Subs not used – Caffry, Farrell, English

Man of the match – Richard Smith

Whitley Bay – Burke, Taylor, Douglas (Picton 73), Rowe, Coulson, Graham, Moore, Robson, Livermore, Chow (Cook 87), Robinson (Dugdale 73)

Man of the match – Robert Livermore