TWO goals in two minutes right before half time did for Warrington Town’s hopes of ending league leaders Redcar Athletic’s unbeaten start at home.
Danni Lay headed home from a Curtis Round corner on 41 minutes, and then barely a minute later, Oscar Fletcher fired a shot through bodies from 12 yards to make it 2-0.
That gave the hosts more than enough security and they controlled the second half, though the Yellows will no doubt point to a controversial decision to disallow a goal when it was goalless in the first half.
Jack Goodwin fired in to the roof of the net on 27 minutes from a cross but was left perplexed when the referee decided to rule it out, with a long stoppage following as an injured player received treatment and the Yellows expressed their disbelief.
There hadn’t been much in the game up to that point, Ben Elliott and Callum Edwards making ‘keeper Josh Mazfari make two comfortable saves, while at the other end the excellent Fletcher curled a shot wide and Andrei Ardelean hooked a shot over the bar.
But Redcar took full control in the period before half-time with a quickfire double and then started the second half with intent and should have scored a third when Ardelean somehow missed from four yards out off Round’s drive across goal.
Mateusz Hewelt denied Round at his near post and then Bobby Bjork cleared off the line to deny Fletcher.
Bjork had been one of several Yellows players who were stuck behind two motorway incidents earlier in the day which resulted in a 15 minute delay to kick-off.
It took until 65 minutes for the Yellows to muster another chance of note, Joe Rodwell-Grant having a shot beaten away by Mazfari.
The next chance, with seven minutes to go, perhaps highlighted it wasn’t going to be the Yellows’ day – Lewis Earl’s header goalwards was cleared off the line and on to his own crossbar and out by a defender to put paid to any hopes of a comeback.
The Yellows finally return home next week against Guiseley, following the completion of the pitch perimeter work at the ground.
Redcar Athletic: Mazfari, Whelan (Parkinson), Round (Spalding), Bartliff, Rowe, Law, Guru, Hawkins (Burns), Boyes, Fletcher, Ardelean (Fewster). Unused sub: Smith.
Warrington Town: Hewelt, Bjork, McIntosh (Rodwell-Grant), Earl, Gumbs, Butler, Edwards (Denton), McHugh (Burke), Elliott (Irabor), Daly, Goodwin.
