Town hit seven in Wakefield thrashing

WARRINGTON Town secured an eighth clean sheet in nine games as their unbeaten run continued with a 7-0 away thrashing of Wakefield.
Ben Wharton scored a hat-trick in a game where Town didn’t even have to hit their peak against a weak home outfit.
After Scott Metcalfe had given the visitors a 20th minute lead, it was one way traffic, and Shaun Reid’s men could have had more, but they were happy with three either side of half time before Wharton secured the match ball with an injury time penalty.
Metcalfe’s goal came on the counter attack after a Wakefield short corner was cleared, and Peter Dogan released the pacey left winger, and he fired in a sharp finish from inside the box.
That triggered a 15 minute onslaught of the Wakefield goal. Within three minutes, Wharton had added his first and Town’s second, finding the bottom corner from outside the box.
The two goalscorers then squandered the opportunity for a third goal just moments later, when they both got in each other’s way from a low cross, with Wharton ultimately firing wide.
Town were getting a lot of joy down the left, and left-back David Thompson set up another chance for Wharton, before Metcalfe almost forced an own goal with his own trickery and low cross.
On the half hour mark, a curling cross from Metcalfe was poked towards goal by Ciaran Kilheeney, and forced the goalkeeper to make another save, tipping wide of his right hand post.
The goalkeeper was in action moments later when Kilheeney was brought down outside the box, and from the resulting free kick, James McCarten’s fierce shot was parried away.
The third goal finally came on 38 minutes, when a sloppy back pass released Wharton, and he slid the ball confidently past the onrushing goalkeeper.
A change at the break saw Jon Newby replace Kilheeney, and he got in on the act just two minutes in the second half. His run and cross saw Wharton cause problems in the box, and the loose ball fell to right-back Phil Davies, who found the top corner with a peach of a shot from the edge of the box.
With Metcalfe still causing the hosts all sorts of problems on the left and Newby on the right, Town continually opened up the Wakefield defence.
Metcalfe almost took advantage of some hesitant defending, only to be denied once again by the goalkeeper, but he turned provider again on 54 minutes, when his run down the left and cut back was side-footed in to the far corner by Newby for 5-0.
Another substitute got on the scoresheet next. Phil Mooney, on for Peter Dogan in the centre of midfield, almost scored with one of his first touches, but was left with a simple finish on 74 minutes after Metcalfe and Newby had once again linked up down the left.
As time ran out, Wharton continued to search for his hat-trick goal, and he finally got his chance in injury time, after being shoved to the ground in the penalty area.
His subsequent spot-kick, struck in to the top left hand corner, was as emphatic as his side’s victory, which marked a ninth consecutive game unbeaten and an eighth clean sheet in nine.

Pictured top – the goal scorers – Phil Davies, Scott Metcalfe, Ben Wharton, Phil Mooney and Jon Newby.

Warrington team: Cook, Davies, Thompson, Dogan (Mooney), McCarten, Robinson, Dawson (Gahgan), Mannix, Wharton, Kilheeney (Newby), Metcalfe. Unused subs: Millington, West.