Back
MATCH REPORT: Prudhoe YC 2-4 Alnwick Town
10-man Prudhoe fell to defeat in a second half thriller against Alnwick Town at Essity Park.
Town’s Ryan Smith gave the visitors the lead midway into the first period. Matters then got worse for Prudhoe when they were reduced to 10 men at the end of the half, with Will Morris receiving a straight red card.
Alnwick doubled their lead at the hour mark, courtesy of Jamie Clark, however the Seniors pulled one back via Michael Wright.
The away side quickly responded with a third goal, Euan Potts scoring his 13th of the season, but Prudhoe’s Kieron Symington halved the deficit with 15 minutes of normal time left to play.
In the final moments of injury time, Antonio Agostinho grabbed Alnwick’s fourth to put the match to bed.
The Seniors came into the midweek fixture looking for a reaction, following a disappointing defeat against Durham United at Maiden Castle.
The Match
After an evenly matched opening to the match, Alnwick tested the Seniors on 21 minutes. A direct ball from ‘keeper Aaron Carr was headed on by Clark then Potts, with Smith latching onto the ball and forcing Sam Wilson to get down well with a strong save.
In the 26th minute, the visitors took the lead. Town’s Dominic Lloyd Hayes won the ball back high up the pitch, with Potts latching onto the ball and passing to Smith, who slotted home.
The YC almost gained a foothold in the game in freak circumstances near the end of the half. The Seniors’ Freddie Marr released Morris down the right flank. With his first touch, the full-back curled a cross into the box, which looked to be heading for the top left corner, but hit the crossbar.
The home side were dealt a major setback at the end of the first half, as Morris received a straight red for his retaliation to a tackle from Town.
10 minutes into the second period, Alnwick’s Smith led a counter-attack with pace, hitting the crossbar with his final effort on goal.
At the hour mark, the away side got their second goal of the match. Potts capitalised on a loose touch from the YC in the centre of the park and released Clark, who placed home into the bottom left corner.
Despite being a man down, the Seniors continued to work for a foothold back in the game, and halved the deficit on 68 minutes. Symington threaded through Wright in on goal. From there, the forward coolly rounded keeper and tapped home.
Just a few minutes later though, Town regained their two-goal advantage. Jordan Dobie ended a strong run down the YC’s right side with a low cross into the box, finding Potts who fired into the Seniors’ net.
Prudhoe did not let Alnwick’s third goal faze them and continued pushing for a way back into the match.
A breakthrough came in the 74th minute. Symington latched onto Marr’s curling freekick, guiding home with an outstretched leg.
As the half progressed, the Seniors enjoyed more possession in Alnwick’s half, firing several dangerous crosses into Town’s box.
On 92 minutes though, the away side's Max Anderson went in on goal, but Wilson denied the number 15 with a super stop from close range.
The YC struggled to produce a clear-cut chance to level the match, and the visitors ensured three points headed back to Alnwick deep into injury time.
With the Seniors committing men forward in the chase for an equaliser, Agostinho capped off a darting run on the counter-attack with a composed finish into the bottom left corner.
After a spirited second half performance from 10-man Prudhoe, the YC will hope to have gained momentum going into Saturday’s fixture. The Seniors are back on the road, facing Grangetown BC.