Match Report

FC United made it two league wins on the run with a convincing 4-1 victory over Eastwood Town at Gigg Lane on Sunday afternoon.

A brace for Mike Norton, a Dean Stott Penalty and a powerful header from Adam Jones were enough to give United the three points and move them back up the table to ninth place with as many as five games in hand on some of the teams above them.

On a bitterly cold afternoon the Reds began the game quickly and looked to take the game to the visitors who shipped six at Ashton last week. A few changes in the team saw Lee Neville pushed up to the left wing, and the marauding left back relished the opportunity to be let off the leash proving himself to be a menace to the Eastwood defence all afternoon.

Just fifteen minutes in and United had the lead as a great cross from Neville on the left was met by the head of Mike Norton who placed his header past visiting ‘keeper Rhys Watkinson to put United a goal up.

Just five minutes later as stand in skipper Adam Jones powerfully headed home from a corner to make the score 2-0 and leave many of the frozen faithful thinking it was more a case of how many we could win by as United seemed to be in control.

The visitors didn’t help themselves with the third goal as Watkinson’s botched clearance only found Matthew Wolfenden who saw his effort stopped by Watkinson outside the box, before Norton got on to the ball and rolled home to put United 3-0 up inside of half an hour.

Just five minutes before half time and United were awarded a penalty after a clumsy challenge by a visiting defender, after seeing his effort saved at Ashton on Wednesday evening Dean Stott seemed determined to put that miss behind him as he fired the ball powerfully into the top corner to give United an unassailable four goal lead at the break.

With the visitors having conceding more than 5 goals in three of their last five games United may have been forgiven for thinking the second half may have been another flurry of goals but the visitors got on the scoreboard themselves as Alex Troke fired past Jon Worsnop to get the visitors a consolation goal.

The second half followed much the same routine as the first as United controlled the game and pushed forward looking to add to their goals with Neville on the left being the main threat as the visiting defence didn’t seem to know how to handle him.

Mike Norton could have had his hat trick on two separate occasions, firstly as a rebounded shot just went over Nortons head as he came rushing in on goal and then later when a ball across the goal face was just inches away from Norton’s outstretched leg at the far post.

United had several half chances on the afternoon as the likes of Cottrell and Birch fired in efforts that were either to high or wide or indeed in some cases both. But the best opportunity United had to extend the lead was when Neville tried a flick to control the ball and then fired over from the penalty spot with what would have been a spectacular goal.

A plus for United was the return of Carlos Roca who had been out for a few weeks, and Roca caused the visiting defence a few problems with his trademark jinky dribbling on the right for the last fifteen minutes, new signing Tom Fisher replaced Norton late on and looked confident on the ball in his brief time on the pitch.

So two wins in a week for United, who now travel to Ilkeston next Saturday looking to make it three from three before a run of three consecutive games against teams also in the top half of the league in Rushall Olympic, Marine and Chorley before the end of the month.

Website man of the match: Lee Neville – played on the left wing and looked the most dangerous player on the park all afternoon.