Tuesday 20th November 2018, NWCFL Premier Division
Ashton Athletic 5 (Peet 9, Nicholson 11, 71, Reid 17, Gilchrist 87)
West 0
Att: 76
West suffered a painful double bout of déjà vu as Ashton Athletic eased to a five-goal win for the second time in a fortnight.
The scoreline was the same as the Lancashire Challenge Trophy tie at the start of November, but there were also echoes of West’s last visit to Brocstedes Park last December – like then, the match was effectively over after 20 minutes as West shipped three quick goals.
West at least kept the home side down to five on this occasion, rather than the seven they hit at the end of 2017, but this was the latest low point in an increasingly desperate season. Seeds of recovery had been sown by the Macron Cup win at Eccleshall and last weekend’s league draw with Litherland REMYCA, but this was a lurch back to the norm and there can be no doubt that West are in the throes of a relegation scrap.
It only took the home side nine minutes to open the scoring – a Yellows corner wasn’t properly cleared and when the ball eventually fell to Joshua Peet, he smashed it beyond Marcus Burgess. And when West surrendered the ball in midfield two minutes later, Nicholson tapped home a right-wing cross to put Ashton in cruise control.
West had barely escaped their own half by the time the home side added a third. The overworked Burgess parried a shot from the edge of the box, but Matthew Reid seized on the rebound and rolled the ball into the net.
The visitors eked out half-chances – Ben Woods prodded an Abel Tsegaye cross straight at goalkeeper Martin Pearson before Tsegaye had a free-kick tipped over – but Ashton were merely conserving energy having sewn the game up. The second half introductions of Ashley Leather and Joe Shaw made little difference despite Leather’s willing running down the right side, and Ashton moved up a gear to add a fourth in the 71st minute. Nicholson collected the ball in the left channel, cut inside and beat Burgess at his near post.
Burgess had produced a number of smart saves to limit the damage but he was helpless to prevent the home side’s fifth goal in the closing moments. A 90-yard ball from the Ashton defence wasn’t challenged, and Adam Gilchrist cracked a fierce shot across the West keeper and inside the far post.
West: Burgess, S. Mason (Potts ht), Cooper, Roberts, Eckersley, Andrews, Tsegaye (Leather ht), Gavin (Shaw 55), Derbyshire, Crowther, Woods. Not used: Kay.
