Northern League Division 1
29 March 2008
Bishop Auckland 3 : Seaham
Red Star 2
Team: Chris
Porter, Lee Foster, Dominic Gamble, Lee Ellison (Luke Ball
87mins), Paul Moss, Martin Langley, Joe Fairish, Kevin Dixon, Gavin Parkin, Carl
Chillingsworth, Curt Warburton
Bishops took on
this vital “must win” clash under leaden skies.
The rain had started at around 1pm, and continued throughout the match
which was played on an increasingly heavy pitch. Lee Ellison and Paul Moss returned after
injuries, with Paul Crager failing to start for the first league game this
season.
The home side had
the first attack of note when Parkin was driven wide but still delivered a good
cross across the face of goal, but there was nobody to apply the finishing
touch.
Both keepers made
good saves to keep the game goalless, with first Porter diving low to cling on
to a decent shot, then Seaham’s ex-Bishop keeper Finch diving full length to
push a Chillingsworth shot out for a corner.
Seaham took the lead
on 26 minutes when another ex-Bishops player, Warren Byrne, beat his man and
shot low past Porter.
Untypically, Gavin
Parkin then missed two great chances to get Bishops back level. The first was saved by the ‘keeper’s legs,
and on the next occasion hesitation allowed a defender to dive in and block the
ball.
However, on 40
minutes Bishops were level when Fairish flick was met by Parkin ten yards out
who fired the ball under the diving ‘keeper to make it 1-1.
Bishops looked
strong early in the second half and a couple of attacks had come to nothing
before Fairish burst into the box and was upended. Parkin slid the spot-kick wide of the left
hand post.
The horror was
compounded when on 59 minutes a defensive clearance was fired back into the box
and Burns prodded the ball in to make it 2-1.
Bishops battled on
through the rain and mud, and were level on 63 minutes when Warburton passed to
Bishops were ahead
on 75 minutes when he met a through ball on his chest. The ball sunk into the mud allowing the
midfielder to compose himself before blasting it home from 15 yards.
Ellison almost
doubled the lead on 79 minutes when he clipped the ball past his marker, but
his shot went straight into the ‘keeper’s chest when a shot to either side
would surely have resulted in a goal.
There were a couple
of nervous moments towards the end, but Bishops picked up the points this committed
performance deserved, and left the field to applause from the crowd sheltering
in the main stand. The entertainment
concluded with two Seaham players attempting to resolve a civil dispute with
acts of violence on the pitch after the final whistle, but fortunately there
were enough team mates to keep the warring parties apart.
The win lifts
Bishops back out of the bottom three, but only just, and relegation still looms
large.