FC United level at the top after victory at Stalybridge

FC United are level on points at the top of the Pitching In Northern Premier League after holding on to win 2-1 at Stalybridge Celtic on Saturday afternoon with goals from Dontai Gabidon and Regan Linney.

Hyde United have leapfrogged the Reds to the top of the table, courtesy of a plus 13 goal difference compared to plus 12, after winning 3-1 at Liversedge. But that takes nothing away from FC United’s hard-fought and entertaining victory in front of 1,057 supporters at Bower Fold.

Right-winger Gabidon was impressive throughout and he broke the deadlock 10 minutes before halftime with a rare ‘Olympico’ goal – a term used for almost a century in South America when a player scores directly from a corner-kick.  

Ten minutes earlier, Stalybridge centre-back Dahrius Waldron had gone in goal as Greg Hall had to be substituted and the home side didn’t have a goalkeeper on the bench. Gabidon took full advantage of Waldron’s inexperience by curling his corner over the stand-in keeper into the far, top corner. A spectacular goal from a special player.  

Six minutes after the breakthrough, Gabidon turned provider when he slipped a ball through to Linney to make it 2-0. Waldron’s goalkeeping fragilities were exposed again as he could only deflect Linney’s fierce effort into the far corner with his leg.   

FC United’s talisman has now notched 17^th goals so far this season – a fantastic achievement, especially by the first weekend of November.

The Reds went into the break two goals to the good, but it could have been very different had it not been for some impressive saves by Dan Lavercombe and some poor finishing by Raul Correia, who blazed two good chances over the bar when it was goalless.

Neil Reynolds' side started the second half where they had left off in the first – with the momentum firmly in their favour. Centre-back Curtis Jones looked to have put the game to bed inside 10 minutes of the restart when his header at the back post from a Charlie Ennis free-kick looped over Waldron to make it 3-0. However, the referee’s assistant raised his flag and the goal was ruled out for offside.

It was a clear turning point in the match as the decision appeared to galvanise Celtic. Lavercombe was called into the action several times in the final half an hour. First of all, he saved a free-kick from Matty Carson and moments later he had to tip a substitute Osebi Abadaki’s header onto the post.

In between those two chances, Jones made a great sliding block inside the six-yard box to deny the hosts a way back into the match. However, they eventually found one – and deservedly so – with less than 15 minutes to go.

Reds centre-back Andy Halls misjudged a high ball over the top and tried to clear his lines with a slide tackle in the box, however, he misjudged that too and conceded a stonewall penalty. Unlike his first half efforts, Correia managed to keep his spot-kick down, placing the ball to Lavercombe’s right to make it 2-1. Game on.

United did have some half chances at the other end with Gabidon blazing over, Linney forcing Waldron into punching away a tantalising cross, and Ennis seeing a powerful shot deflected wide. However, it was turning into a nervy climax as the hosts were throwing everyone forward in a bid to get an equaliser.

With five minutes to go, Lavercombe was the hero once again with another exceptional save. This time United’s shot-stopper clawed away a goalbound header from captain Tom Miller. Thankfully, that proved to be the last chance of the match.

United had weathered the Stalybridge storm to take all three points in what was an entertaining and incredibly even game.

Website man of the match: Honourable mentions for Dontai Gabidon and Alex Wollerton, who worked well together down the right wing in the first half, and Regan Linney’s consistently impressive performances shouldn’t be taken for granted. However, this week’s award goes to Dan Lavercombe for keeping Stalybridge at bay to secure victory.

Report by Matthew Haley