Trafford 2-3 Frickley Athletic

Two goals from Reece Thompson and one from Brad Riley saw the Blues earn a vital win at Trafford to move out of the relegation zone.

Without the injured Luke Hornsey and Jake Stannard as well as the suspended Luke Hinsley and the not fully fit Macaulay Parkinson Manager Karl Rose was at least boosted by the return of Matty Bloor. Lee Stratford replaced Hornsey in midfield.

The home side started well with Ben Simpson having to push away a 25 yard shot from Jimmy McCarthy in the second minute and three minutes later Simpson denied John Pritchard who found himself through on goal.

The Blues took the lead with their first meaningful attack in the 9th minute. Gavin Allott sent Thompson clear inside the box and he confidently placed the ball into the bottom right hand corner from 12 yards.

In the 18th minute Brad Dockerty had and angled shot blocked on the line by Tom Read before the loose ball was played back in by Stratford for Thompson to head in but the goal was disallowed as Thompson was ruled marginally offside.

Andy Smart went close for Trafford in the 33rd minute when his 20 yard free-kick deflected off the wall, wrong-footing Simpson but the ball rolled wide of the right hand post.

The Blues should have extended their lead on 40 minutes when James Kay’s free-kick was cleared only for the ball to be played over a static Trafford defence for Allott to be left on his own inside the box but he took far too long to get his shot away, allowing Read to block from close range.

Allott was clear again eight minutes after half time, this time Read blocked Allott’s prodded shot with his legs. The loose ball fell to Dockerty whose strong shot was well tipped over by the recovering Read.

Three minutes later it was Simpson’s turn to come to the rescue as he pulled off a great one-handed save to deny Chris McDonagh from close range.

The Blues then enjoyed a period of dominance with Riley having a 22 yard shot just clear the bar on 52 minutes whilst a minute later Riley had another shot pushed over the bar by Read following good work from Dockerty.

Riley got his reward on 68 minutes when he swung over a free-kick from the left which evaded everyone and nestled just inside the far post to double the Blues’ lead.

Thompson had a first time 25 yard shot pushed past the post by Read on 73 minutes before the Blues extended their lead on 77 minutes. Riley sent over a deep cross from the right to Allott who laid the ball into the path of Dockerty on the left side of the box. He beat two men before cutting the ball across the face of goal for Thompson to slam the ball into an empty net from close range.

It should have been game over at that but in typical Frickley fashion the remaining minutes were anything but a formality. Bloor was replaced by Joe Davies on 79 minutes and four minutes later Kay nudged over McCarthy inside the box with the referee immediately awarding the penalty. However, McDonagh’s spot kick flew well over the crossbar.

The Blues failed to heed that warning. Allott was again clean through on 85 minutes but this time he was denied by a great save from Reid but a minute later Liam Blake hit the face of the crossbar with an angled shot for Trafford with Pritchard following up to fire into an unguarded net.

As the game neared the end of the announced five minutes of stoppage time the Blues lost Luke Jeffs through injury with Sam Cable coming on.

With more time added on it was six minutes into time added on when substitute Mark Derbyshire struck a 20 yard shot past Simpson and into the bottom left hand corner. Thankfully the final whistle blew seconds after the restart.

Trafford : Tom Read, Chris Palmer, Andy Smart, Martyn Andrews, Adam Jones, Matt Doughty (Aaron Smith 84 mins), Liam Blake, Jeff King (Mark Derbyshire 70 mins), Chris Donagh, Jimmy McCarthy, John Pritchard. Unused subs. Josh Reed, Oliver Riley.

Frickley Athletic : Ben Simpson, Luke Jeffs (Sam Cable 90 mins), James Kay, Lee Stratford, John Cyrus, Jameel Ible, Brad Riley, Matty Bloor (Joe Davies 79 mins), Reece Thompson, Gavin Allott, Brad Dockerty. Unused subs. Macaulay Parkinson, Karl Rose, Sam Leigh.

Referee : Mr. A. Jackson

Attendance : 145