TWO goals either side of half time proved the difference as Warrington Town went down 2-1 away at play-off chasing Stockton Town.
Michael Sweet fired the home side ahead three minutes before the break, before Lewis King scored a solo goal at the start of the second half to give the Yellows too much to do.
Although Kallan Murphy scored his second goal for the club on 56 minutes, the Yellows couldn’t find an equaliser despite forcing eight second half corners.
Manager Paul Carden was forced to make changes to his line-up and his formation, with Joe Rodwell-Grant and Jay Harris joining Josh Shaw on the injury list from last week, while Matthew Tweedley was only fit enough for a place on the bench and didn’t make an appearance.
Stockton forced a corner straight from the kick-off and nearly opened the scoring through skipper Adam Nicholson, his header cleared off the line by Troy Bourne.
Goalkeeper Liam Isherwood made a comfortable stop from Stephen Thompson’s shot through bodies and then made himself big to deny Sweet after had looped up in the box.
Playing with two attacking midfielders behind Murphy, the Yellows struggled to make in-roads in the final third until a nice touch by Reece Daly opened things up for him to fire a left-footed shot over the bar.
But Stockton opened the scoring on 42 minutes when Josh Scott managed to get to a long ball before the byline and flashed a cross in to the middle that Sweet was able to twist and fire past Isherwood.
Jack Doyle looped a header on to the roof of the net as the Yellows went in 1-0 down.
But it was two within five minutes of the restart as King picked the ball up in his own half, and was able to run right through the heart of the Yellows team, beat a man and enter the box, picking his spot to beat a helpless Isherwood.
That aside, the Yellows enjoyed the better of the second half and within five minutes had claimed a lifeline through Murphy, who pounced on some indecision from ‘keeper Nathan Harker and Nicholson to get on a loose ball and slot home.
Max Thompson couldn’t quite get enough contact on a header, and Troy Bourne headed on to the roof of the net as the Yellows just couldn’t quite convert successions of corners in to a goal.
Stockton always looked lively on the break, and Isherwood did well to smother another chance for King after he had ghosted in to the box unmarked.
The defeat brings to an end the Yellows’ mini three match unbeaten run, ahead of next weekend’s home game against Whitby Town.
Stockton Town: Harker, Ar Purewal, Gallagher (Steels), King, Nicholson, Coulthard, Sweet (Am Purewal), Bramwell, Scott, Petitjean (Birtles), Thompson (Spears). Unused sub: Smith.
Warrington Town: Isherwood, Melhado, J Doyle, Gumbs (Morris), Butler, Lloyd (Thompson), Vela, Murphy, Daly, Scanlon, Bourne. Unused subs: Roper, Tweedley.
