On Tuesday evening Chorley welcomed Scarborough Athletic to Victory Park and, like Hereford, the Seadogs are expected to be operating at the top end of the table come the end of the season. Just a hint of déjà vu crept in as the game was in its early stages. Similarly to Saturday, Chorley began on the front foot, but this time managed to take the lead early. Craig Hewitt capped a great start to his Chorley career by grabbing his first goal for the club on ten minutes, a thunderous strike from the left that gave Whitley no chance in goal.
Scarborough had struggled to get going under pressure from the Magpies, but they regrouped to make it a tight and compact contest. For the rest of the half, they had the better of the possession, yet despite a few chances that drew some decent stops from Matt Urwin, they rarely threatened the Magpies who kept a solid shape. It was two key chances to potentially kill the visitor’s morale though that ended up defining the evening. The first, on the half hour mark, saw Horbury put Hall through on goal. With time to pick his placement, he somehow managed to drag his shot wide. On the stroke of half time came the second. Craig Hewitt’s free-kick crashing down off the crossbar for Hall to send his rebounded header off target from inside six yards.
Sensing their let off with the game still in the balance, the second half belonged to Scarborough. Within five minutes of the restart, they had levelled the scores through a header from Richie Bennett that cruelly deflected off Adam Henley. After the game, Andy Preece vented his frustration that Chorley did not deserve the game to hinge on a goal such as that, but now that he will have had time to watch it back, he may be more than a little frustrated. As the cross came in from out on the right, there were six black and white shirts behind the ball and only Bennett in the eighteen-yard box. The striker dropped off Ellis and managed to get his header away under no real pressure.
Preece would go on to say that the equaliser “knocked the stuffing” out of his side, and the Magpies certainly seemed at that point to lose all the shape that had served them well in the first half. Hewitt had become increasingly isolated. Mo Touray, making his first start in the side in the place of Carr, though quiet, had a decent first half, his backheel assisting Hewitt’s goal. In the second half it became apparent that him and Hall were playing too similar a role as the Magpies tried to regain control.
Scarborough’s manager Jonathan Greening made two attacking changes on the hour mark, bring on the marauding Harry Green and set-piece specialist Lewis Maloney to add fresh impetus to their growing dominance of the game. Frank Mulhern followed shortly after for top-scorer Dom Tear, to provide a different type of threat up front.
Clamour for changes was coming from the Duke Street terrace too, with Tom Carr having already replaced Mo Touray. It took until seven minutes from play for Jack Rice to be introduced for his first competitive minutes, but with Scarborough in the ascendancy, he found his impact, like Hewitt’s, limited. A succession of corners pinned Chorley in their own box, and it felt like they might just battle for a valuable point on the balance of play. It was pressure that could not be sustained. Preece may be frustrated with the equaliser, but the winning goal was a top striker’s finish. Substitute Frank Mulhern made an excellent near post run, his glancing header past Urwin and into the far corner to give Scarborough the lead in stoppage time.
Sam Bird was immediately introduced to the action, and it can be argued that he should perhaps have been introduced earlier for his long throw speciality, particularly with Harvey Smith ending the game up front and the Magpies struggling to mount much of a threat. There was still one last chance though, and things could have been different but for an excellent last gasp block by Alex Purver that crowned a superb individual performance and earned him a place in the Vanarama Team of Midweek.
Preece seemed reasonably upbeat after the game citing the overall performances of the first two home games as encouraging, and with the number of changes to the squad that’s understandable. Yet he cannot fail to be slightly concerned that those performances have not translated into points, with just one point from six. The season is long, but at the forefront of his mind will be ensuring that those new players he has put faith in develop their understandings quickly.
It doesn’t get any easier for the Magpies over the Bank Holiday Weekend either, with a trip to Lincolnshire to face the league leaders Scunthorpe United first up. In the close season, the Iron went with continuity and promoted from within, appointing first team coach Andy Butler following the departure of Jimmy Dean. Butler’s side made an excellent start to the season, opening their campaign with an eye-catching 0-3 defeat of Brackley Town at St. James Park.
In their last two fixtures they have had to navigate two potentially tricky opponents in Marine and Needham Market, both promoted to the division this season. Expected to win, it required professional performances to achieve the maximum points. On paper, a 3-0 win at Glanford Park against Marine looked like the home side eased to a win, but they did not have it all their own way. Away to Needham Market, a side yet to pick up a point from their opening games, the Iron had to be patient as the hosts desperately tried to make home advantage count, Danny Whitehall’s winning penalty coming within the final ten minutes.
It is going to be difficult for the Magpies, Scunthorpe pose a threat right across the pitch. Danny Whitehall scored a brace the last time Chorley visited Glanford Park, and those of us with long enough memories will remember he also found the net twice against the Magpies in August 2019, in Maidenhead United’s 4-1 win at York Road in the National League. Danny has also scored in two of the first three fixtures this season.
Our second game of the weekend follows forty-eight hours later with the visit of Southport. Chorley faced the Sandgrounders on the August Bank Holiday Monday last season; a 0-2 victory was the Magpies’ first win at Haig Avenue since 1987. Included in that quite dismal record was Chorley’s last August Bank Holiday clash with Southport before last season, a fixture played at Haig Avenue on Monday August 31, 1992, a game Chorley lost 7-1.
It has been a much better start to this season than the last campaign for Southport, a string of four straight defeats and no wins in the opening seven games caused Liam Watson to step down. The new manager in charge since then has been Jim Bentley, and he steered the Sandgrounders to an excellent opening day win at Haig Avenue, 3-0 against Alfreton. This season Bentley has put together a side of experienced campaigners, bringing in Danny Philliskirk from AFC Fylde, Sam Minihan from Buxton, and Jordan Keane – who has been named captain – from FC Halifax Town.
Last weekend they made the long trip to Needham Market and managed to capitalise on a horrendous mistake by the host’s keeper to take all three points. In midweek, another long trip awaited up to Spennymoor, where they tasted their first defeat of the season. Southport won’t be too downhearted though, two long trips back-to-back, and defeat to a Moors side that haven’t lost a home game since January is no disgrace. Southport entertain Hereford on Saturday.
The season is still in its early throes, but these four games in nine days, culminating in the Bank Holiday Weekend, could be crucial. The Magpies will be desperate to get their home account up and running on Monday in the league’s early kick off, let’s hope for a more complete performance, and that elusive win in front of what’s sure to be another good crowd. See you there.
Martin Ramsbotham.
