Dabbers draw puts Reds top

A 30-yard strike from Rory Patterson with 15 minutes to go earned FC United a point away to fellow high flyers Nantwich Town and sent them back to the top of the North West Counties Division One table.

In truth it was a game with very little goalmouth action and neither side really did enough to merit winning, but manager Karl Marginson will be pleased to have come away with a 1-1 draw after being a goal down and chasing the game for 40 minutes.

It took the Reds just eight minutes to put the ball into the back of the net, only for it to be ruled out for offside. Josh Howard crossed from the right and it was headed home by David Chadwick, however, the Reds’ skipper was a yard ahead of the Nantwich defence.

Margy’s men applied some good early pressure on the Dabbers but had nothing to show for it as they failed to test the home side’s ‘keeper Rob Hackney.

Despite this it was Nantwich who took the lead after 35 minutes. Leading scorer Andy Kinsey found the ball in the left hand side of the 18-yard box. The big centre forward fired his shot brilliantly into the bottom left hand corner of the Reds’ goal.

In the second half it was mainly one-way traffic from FC United as they searched for the all important equaliser. The Reds were finding themselves in some great positions but squandered their chances to make Hackney work.

It was only a matter of time was the shouts of the FC United faithful after the visitors created chance after chance. The Red army were right to be optimistic and were rewarded in the 75th minute with a strike to savour.

A corner from substitute Dave Swarbrick was headed away by the Nantwich defence but only to the path off Rory Patterson, 30-yards from goal. The young Irishman couldn’t have hit his shot any better and, with the help of a deflection on the way, it flew into the back of the Nantwich goal.

United then went on the search for a winner but it was to no avail and they had to settle for a point in wet conditions at Jackson Avenue in front of 1,436.

The result completes a successful week for United, taking four points from their closest rivals after trailing in both matches and the point takes Margy’s men back to the top of the table on goal difference with Salford City with five games in hand.

John Hill


Line ups:

Nantwich Town
1. R Hackney
2. M Fitton
3. P Taylor
4. R Smith
5. P Donnelly
6. P Parkinson (capt)
7. M McCullough
8. A Beasley
9. A Kinsey
10. A Bott
11. D Griggs
Subs
12. G Kiss (for 10 86)
13.
14. S Scheuber
15. D Smith

Scorer: Kinsey 35


FC United
1. S Ashton
2. M Taylor
3. A Mortimer
4. N Platt
5. D Chadwick (capt)
6. R Nugent
7. J Howard
8. G Sampson
9. S Rudd
10. J Wright
11. R Patterson
Subs
12. D Swarbrick (for 7, 67)
13. K Harrop
14. D Brown

Scorers: Patterson 75