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Saturday 12th April - Frickley Athletic 0-1 Harrogate Town

With Gary Reece being available after missing the last few games through work commitments Duncan Richards was moved into midfield. Curtis Bernard replaced Adam Russell as Lee Morris' partner up front.

Before the game Frickley Chairman Pete Bywater was presented with a Yeovil Town pennant by Tim Lancaster of the Yeovil Independent Supporters Association who was in turn presented with a Frickley plate. Frickley was a ground that Tim didn't get to visit when Frickley were in the Conference so Tim and a group of Yeovil fans decided to take in today's match before heading over to Belle Vue for Yeovil's match with Doncaster Rovers which kicked off at 5.35pm.

The match itself was a niggly affair and a fussy referee did nothing to improve this. The Blues went close after just 3 minutes when Bernard did well down the right before laying the ball back to Richards whose 22 yard shot was deflected towards Steve Woolford but his angled 12 yard volley went side. Harrogate went close on 15 minutes when Gary hatto fouled Lee Cowling 25 yards out and Robbie Whellans put the resulting free-kick inches wide of the left hand post. Two minutes later Colin Hunter played in former Blues' player Mick McNaughton but the stand-in striker was too slow, allowing Antony Jackson to get back and dispossess him. Town then lost Hunter through injury, with Paul Sykes replacing him. On 25 minutes Harrogate went close again when Dave Merris' corner was too deep but in trying to clear Woolford only succeeded in heading it back into the danger area where Michael Ord volleyed just side of the left hand post with Mark Samways stranded. A minute later Town keeper Ashley Connor pulled off a great save to turn Hatto's powerful left foot volley from 15 yards around the post and the corner came to nothing. Three minutes later the visitors took the lead when Sykes' cross from the left to the back post found the head of McNaughton who did brilliantly to get to it. Samways got a touch on it and Jackson, stood on the line, headed it against the opposite post only for the ball to roll back over the line. Within a minute the Blues could have been level when a deep free-kick into the box was headed back by Jackson to Morris but his close range header clipped the outside of the left hand post. Just before half time Town lost Ord with a suspected broken leg as the Blues won a corner. The poor flag kick eventually saw the ball returned into the box where Paul Marquis flicked it towards Hatto in the six yard box but a defender got a touch to knock it past his own keeper only for the ball to run out for a corner before Hatto could reach it.

The second half was largely devoid of goalmouth action until the latter stages. The Blues struggled to create much in the way of chances whilst Harrogate seemed happy to counter attack. Town should have increased their lead on 55 minutes when Whellans headed into the path of Cowling but he shot over from 12 yards with only Samways to beat whilst five minutes later McNaughton headed over from a left wing corner. Phil Sharpe gradually introduced all three substitutes to try and craft an equaliser but it was all to no avail as it took until 6 minutes from time for the Blues to worry Connor when Mark Hancock volleyed wide of the left hand post. Whellans should have wrapped the game up when he took advantage of Frickley's commitment to attack by breaking clear but he took too long before eventually shooting over from close range.

Frickley Athletic : Samways, Reece, Gowen, Woolford (Lindley 80), Jackson, Marquis, Hancock, Richards (Russell 58), Morris, Bernard, Hatto (Daly 72) 

Harrogate Town : Connor, Ord (McDaid 45), Curtis, Sturdy, Cowling, Merris, Turley (Jackson 80), Bonsall, McNaughton, Whellans, Hunter (Sykes 20)

Attendance : 234

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