L4 Fire Blanks As Mossley Grab All 3 Points

With a depleted squad due to injury and school isolations we took on a Mossley Hill side who would give us a stern test. Joel Crookes was handed a debut at right back in the absence of Samson and he put in a superb performance. We started very well with a fast tempo which had Mossley camped in their half. Several chances were created in the opening stages of the half most noticeably to Alex McDonald but his range was well off and everything was straight at their keeper. The work rate and willingness to win the ball back high up the pitch was very encouraging but ultimately it’s goals that win games and the wasted chances would prove costly. Worse was to come when a deflected effort gave Mossley the lead with just 2 minutes of the half remaining. It was a cruel blow for our boys who should have been coming in at the break with a significant lead, not trailing.

Captain Paddy Clegg replaced McDonald at the break which saw Kaleb Sweeney pushing further forward in a wide left position. It was almost the perfect tactical switch when Sweeney put a terrific cross into the box which our skipper done well to get in front of his man and head towards the bottom corner but their keeper pulled off a fantastic save. We’d started the second half in a similar vain as the first period however Mossley doubled their advantage but not without controversy. A foul throw in was deemed ok by referee Ray McLaughlin and the resulting cross into the box was tapped home at the far post. The situation was made worse when Paddy was pulled down in the box but no penalty was awarded. Another big moment in the game that didn’t go our way which seemed to dent our belief the more the game went on that we could still salvage a comeback. Chances were still created but not converted and with us taking more risks and playing a bit more expansive the game was put out of our reach in the 73rd minute. Joe Wilson failed to deal with a wicked free kick and it gave Mossley another easy tap in to seal the points. Although the result didn’t go our way the performance was excellent and the boys should be extremely proud. Huge strides have been made since we come back after the lockdown and if this display shows one thing it’s that we can certainly give anyone a game.