Silsden 7 Garforth 1

Town suffered their heaviest defeat in eighteen months as their unbeaten league run was brought to an abrupt end by a ruthless Silsden.

It was a hammering that even half an hour in was hard to see coming, but as impressive as the hosts were, a disjointed Town made it easy for them at times with too many players performing below their best.

With both Mike Morris and Alex Low missing, Kane Bingley was the latest midfielder to be drafted into centre-back after Dan Coupland failed a late fitness test. There were also starts for fellow midfielders Joe Colley and Dan Williams.

In a tentative start to the game Sam Barker provided Town's first chance when his deflected shot brought a routine stop from Silsden stopper Alfie Darke. Toby Wells made a great save to deny Khurram Shazad at close range on 22 mins. It all started to go wrong for The Miners when the hosts were awarded a penalty after Joe Colley was adjudged to have handled a right wing cross. Aidan Kirby stepped up and rifled the ball past Wells to open the scoring.

Rather than seeking a route back into the game, the goal led to a capitulation most out of character for a Garforth side in recent months. Wells made a good save to deny Shazad on 36 mins, but the hosts' lead was soon doubled when Jake Taylor-Mountford worked his way in from the left and finished well across Wells into the bottom corner. It was then three and a second for Taylor-Mountford on 39 mins when he easily beat the offside trap and found the net with a low finish. Wells did well to tip over the bar Joseph Mitchell's 25-yard effort, but there was time for a fourth before the break when Daniel Illingworth's header was adjudged to have crossed the line despite efforts to clear.

Manager Rob Hunter sought to stem the tide with a double substitution at the break, club captain James Beaston (making a return from injury) and Aiden Kearsley replacing Kane Bingley and Jack Slinn.

Dan Williams saw a shot blocked in the six-yard box as The Miners sought to reduce the arrears. Things however went from bad to worse on 58 mins as another devastating spell for the hosts brought three more goals. Town gave the ball away from a free-kick, allowing Kirby to break forward and get the better of Lee Turner and Wells to make it five. Five became six when Taylor-Mountford brought Wells out of his goal and delivered to Kirby in the box who slotted into the empty net to complete his hattrick. The impressive Shazad was provider again for The Cobbydalers' seventh, weaving his way into the box and finding an unmarked Jay Benn to turn home.

Taylor-Mountford was unlucky not to complete a hattrick of his own when his cross-cum-shot crashed off the crossbar on 71 mins. There was a rare Garforth chance five minutes later when Adam Priestley's header at the back post from Danny Buttle's delivery was just wide. Something to cheer for Town's shell-shocked away following arrived on 84 mins when Colley was fouled in the box by Illingworth. Up stepped Priestley who slammed the ball into the net (probably in anger) to reduce the deficit to a mere six.

There was one more chance for the hosts to trouble Town's record books when Shazad delivered to substitute Harrison Hardisty-Blackwell at the back post, but his header was just wide.

Luckily, we have only three days to dwell on this one with Liversedge visiting the Bannister Prentice Stadium on Tuesday (kick-off 7:45pm).