Town off the top after goalless draw

WARRINGTON Town dropped more points in their push for promotion in a goalless draw at Cammell Laird.
After last week’s home humbling at the hands of title rivals Curzon Ashton, Shaun Reid’s side lost top spot as they failed to break down the hosts.
They ended strongest, in what was an end-to-end final 20 minutes, but failed to create many clear cut chances.
The best chance fell to Ciaran Kilheeney, (pictured top) who shot left footed straight in to goalkeeper Mike Langley from the left side of the penalty area.
Langley also saved the home side in the dying seconds of the game, stretching out to claim the ball as Ashley Ruane tried to take it round him following a flicked header on by Ben Wharton.
As it was Lairds, who named former Town midfielder Phil Mooney as captain for the game, probably deserved a point.
Another ex-Town player, striker Jamie Henders, proved a handful up front for Craig Robinson and James McCarten, re-united at centre back in the absence of captain David Mannix which saw John McKenna move up to midfield.
McCarten had Town’s best two chances of the first half, first seeing a curling free kick pushed around the post by Langley, and then heading over unmarked from the resulting corner.
Lairds started strongly second half and had claims for a penalty waved away when winger Joe Holt went down somewhat theatrically in the box under a challenge from David Thompson, preferred at left-back to Louis Corrigan.
Kilheeney’s chance came just short of the hour mark, Aaron Bowen flicking on a header to leave Town’s top scorer free in the box, and he will have been disappointed not to have done better.
It had been a fairly dull game, but it opened up in the final quarter. Henders tried an ambitious overhead kick that fell wide of the post and then almost caught Josh Ollerenshaw off his line from 40 yards.
At the other end, Scott Metcalfe was terrorising the home defence, but Town just couldn’t find the killer touch.
Wharton and Ruane were chucked on for the final 20 minutes, and Ruane perhaps should have done better when he was released by the former down the right hand side, blazing high and wide of Langley’s left hand post.
The pair linked up again at the death, Ruane bringing down Wharton’s flicked header to bear down on the goalkeeper, who guessed right and managed to snatch the ball away and the chance was gone.
The draw, coupled with a win for Curzon Ashton against Salford City, saw Town lose their place at the top of the Evo-Stik First Division North table.
Cammell Laird: Langley, Potter, Parle, Hollett, Dysart, Mooney (Giliburu), Couch (O’Brien), Evans, Cairns, Holt (Foley), Henders. Unused subs: Lundon, Foy.
Warrington Town: Ollerenshaw, Anane, Thompson, Meakin, McCarten, Robinson, Gahgan (Dawson), Kilheeney (Ruane), Bowen (Wharton), Metcalfe.

Kilheeney shoots

The keeper saves

Warrington Town manager Shaun Reid