Cullercoats 1 Percy Main 4

Thanks again to Ian Cusack for the write up.......

The second game of the Thompson-Walker-Deagle era for Percy Main saw the first victory; an emphatic success away to local rivals Cullercoats, where the Main produced a second half as dominant as it was attractive on the eye. Over the years, many great goalscorers have graced the hallowed claret and blue of the Villagers, but never before has a player who hit the headlines for notching the winner in a Wembley final turned out for the club. Fittingly John Campbell, the former Oxford, Torquay, Darlington, Whitby, Benfield and Heaton Stannington striker, slammed in a hat trick on his debut.

However the Walker wizard, alongside strike partner Jonathan Wright, once of Hibernian, in perhaps the most left-footed front pairing in history, was eclipsed for the Man of the Match award, as was the utterly impeccable Dean Deagle who produced a stellar performance at left back, and the all-action, strong running, selfless creativity of Billy Walker. No, the star performer for the Villagers was Adam Green, whose titanic showing in midfield enabled the defence to be afforded much protection and created many opportunities for the attack. He literally did not put a foot wrong all afternoon.

Of course, this being Percy Main, it wasn’t plain sailing from the start. After a short delay to proceedings to clean up the mess of a thoughtless dog walker, Cullercoats tried t impose themselves from the start, causing Reece Monaghan to distinguish himself with a brilliant, instinctive tip over from a full-blooded, close range volley by Jonny Watson. It was only a temporary respite though, as Richard Jull capitalised on a free kick in a central position, just outside the area, curling in a delightful finish that left Monaghan helpless.

The Main were level with 90 seconds, when new signing Mark Waite pounced on a loose ball in the Cullercoats area to drive the visitors level. A quiet period of attritional midfield play saw chances at a premium as the two sides cancelled each other out, when John Campbell began to exert his influence on the game. Running onto a glorious crossfield pass, Campbell took the ball in his stride and proceeded to execute a beautiful dink over the onrushing home keeper, Taylor Blaney after 35 minutes.

The second half saw a noticeable increase in the tempo of the game, in combination with a clear step change in the level of performance from most Percy Main games this season. The Villagers simply seemed tougher, more organised and determined to win the game. Undoubtedly, the introduction of several experienced, quality signings were the difference today. After a couple of reasonable shouts for penalties, Campbell pounced again on 65 minutes, slotting home into the bottom corner after Green’s eye of the needle through ball had split the Cullercoats defence wide open.

Jonathan Wright was denied by a quality stop by Blaney, with Campbell unlucky not to complete his hat trick after thumping the rebound against the outside of the post. He was not to be denied, claiming a treble after intercepting a short back pass and firing beyond Blaney’s despairing leap on 81 minutes to complete the scoring on a highly successful afternoon for the visitors.