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Saturday 22nd November - Frickley Athletic 1-2 Stalybridge Celtic

Phil Sharpe made just one change to the starting eleven as he recalled Nick Richardson in place of Dan Sheriffe.

A fairly even first half saw Karl Colley have his powerful shot from just inside the box blocked by Craig Dootson before the ball was hacked clear whilst Colin Potts missed a great chance for Stalybridge on 14 minutes when he found himself in acres of space on the edge of the box but he blasted well over the bar. Potts then put a 25 yard free-kick just wide of the left hand post following a foul by Antony Jackson. On the half hour Mark Vickerage did well to feed Richardson down the right and his ball into the box saw Colley use his strength to hold off two defenders but he stabbed his shot over the bar as Dootson came out. Minute later Paul Marquis met a corner from the right by Gary Hatto with a glancing header which went just the wrong side of the far post.

Stalybridge started the second half the better of the two sides and almost took the lead just two minutes after half time but Mark Samways pulled off a brilliant one-handed save to tip a Ross Clegg 30 yard shot over via the top of the crossbar. Phil Eastwood then headed over from 6 yards when unmarked following a cross from the left. However, the Blues weathered the storm and started to come back into the game. On 56 minutes they took the lead when a free-kick from half way was only half cleared and when the ball was returned into the box Richardson saw his header touched onto the post by Dootson but LEE MORRIS lashed in the rebound (click here for video clip). The joy was short-lived as four minutes later the Blues failed to clear when under pressure in the box, leaving Potts to fire into an empty net after Samways had parried the initial shot. Jackson headed just over the bar from a Hatto free-kick on 68 minutes as it looked likely that the game would end all-square but on 84 minutes Celtic substitute Steve Foster did well down the right and he turned the ball inside to the near post where Kenny Mayers slid the ball in from close range. The Blues twice came close to snatching an equaliser in the dying minutes as Hatto saw his angled shot deflected against the outside of the left hand post on 89 minutes following a goalmouth scramble whilst in the third minute of stoppage time Colley did brilliantly down the left to hold off two men and send over a cross which Morris flicked agonisingly over the bar from 8 yards. 

Frickley Athletic : Samways, Richards, Hatto, Richardson (Blythen 87), Jackson, Marquis, Pugh, Colley, Morris, Vickerage (Sheriffe 66), Lindley. Unused sub. McCargo

Stalybridge Celtic : Dootson, German, Heald, Bowker, Keeling, Wharton, Bowman (Foster 62), Clegg, Mayers, Eastwood (Thornley 62), Potts. Unused sub. Bullimore 

Att: 190

Ref : Mr N. Wheeler (Leeds) 

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