WHITLEY BAY 4 ASHINGTON 4
Tuesday 13th October
“What a game!” That must have been thought going through the minds of the 150 fans who were lucky enough to have witnessed this eight goal thriller.
Always an eagerly awaited fixture, this local derby was a thoroughly entertaining game between two teams intent on playing attacking football and in the end a draw was probably a fair result. It was played in persistent rain, but unlike several other football venues in the region which were waterlogged, the game was never in doubt and the playing surface stood up exceptionally well to the appalling weather.
The sides came into the game in contrasting form. Ashington arrived at Hillheads having won their previous six games, while Whitley had lost their last four.
It was Whitley who made the brighter start, quickly going on the attack, and it took them just three minutes to open the scoring, Adam Shanks receiving the ball on the edge of the box before lobbing it perfectly over keeper McHugh. Three minutes later Richard Coulson ran on to a through ball but McHugh got there to make the clearance just in time.
Ashington responded with an equaliser in the 12th minute when Bobby Taylor was allowed too much space on the visitors’ right flank and he cut in before drilling a low shot across Bannon and just inside the far post.
Back came Whitley and three minutes later Matty Weirs put in a cross from the left that caused confusion in the Ashington box and was not properly cleared. Shanks saw his chance and capitalised perfectly, firing home his second goal of the night to restore Whitley’s lead.
Their advantage was short-lived however, with a penalty awarded to the Colliers when Robinson was adjudged to have brought down an opponent in the box. Dean Briggs made no mistake with the spot kick making the score 2-2 with less than 20 minutes played.
The attacking play continued unabated and barely 60 seconds later a Whitley chance was denied when Matty Weirs was penalised for an innocuous looking challenge as he broke into the Ashington box.
Richard Coulson was proving a thorn in the side of the Ashington rearguard with his pace down the wing and in the 29th minute he burst clear on the left and closed in on goal before slotting the ball under the advancing McHugh to put Whitley ahead for the third time in the game.
Hopes that this time they could hold onto their lead were dashed just four minutes later when the impressive Briggs went on a mazy run through the Bay defence, shrugging off several challenges before placing his shot beyond the reach of Bannon for a top quality goal.
The pace of the game continued unabated and Craig McFarlane was not far off restoring Whitley’s lead with a rasping shot that was just too high to trouble McHugh. Four minutes before the interval Whitley had strong appeals for a penalty rejected when the ball ricocheted off the keeper and Coulson was held back by a defender as he attempted to break through on an open goal.
After a first half with six goals, it would not have been surprising if the pace had slackened after the interval but Whitley continued on the offensive, with Lewis Orrell bringing a fine save from McHugh, who did well to palm away a stinging shot from the Bay midfielder. At this stage, Whitley were controlling the game quite effectively, denying the Colliers chances on goal. As the half progressed, play became increasingly interrupted by the referee’s whistle, with a plethora of cautions being handed out, mostly to Bay players, but both sets of players and fans became frustrated with what they saw as inconsistent decision making. A dangerous challenge on Adam Shanks went unpunished while minor offences saw yellow cards brandished. The visitors felt similarly aggrieved at decisions which went against them, including a penalty claim.
The stoppages disrupted the flow of the game but into the final ten minutes, both sides stepped up their efforts to secure a winning goal. McFarlane saw a shot saved after good work from substitute Michael Colquhoun but with just three minutes left, the visitors took the lead for the first time in the game when Harmison played the ball through to sub Jack Butler who was clear on goal and seized his chance, slotting the ball past Bannon.
Ashington must have thought they had snatched a late victory but the determination and character of this Bay side shone through again and as on two previous occasions this season, it was Matty Weirs who came up with a last minute goal, latching onto a great ball from midfield and bursting through on the right of the box before rifling a shot past McHugh, to the delight of the home fans.
The action was not quite all over yet and with the game entering stoppage time, Colquhoun might have grabbed a winner but McHugh was on his toes and held the youngster’s shot just under the bar.
This was a game that deserved a bigger audience than the 150 maximum currently allowed, and both sets of players deserve great credit for putting such an entertaining display in unfavourable conditions.
WHITLEY BAY: Bannon, McFarlane, Dunn, Lowery(Brannen 80mins), Hamilton, Gillesphey, Orrell(Colquhoun 75mins), Robinson, Shanks, M Weirs, Coulson
Substitutes not used: Taylor, Richardson, Lister
Cautions: Lowery, Robinson, Gillesphey, Shanks, Dunn, McFarlane
Referee: Chris Joyce
Attendance:150
