BRIGG TOWN FC 0 LEEK TOWN 4 AT THE HAWTHORNS - EVO-STIK LEAGUE DIVISION ONE SOUTH

MATCH REPORT BY BOB TAYLOR

 

A depleted Brigg Town team played encouragingly well for the first hour of the game but after the visitors scored their first goal, three more followed in the last twenty minutes to emphasise their win. 

Michael Jacklin, Jordan Thewliss and Liam Dickens all decided to play elsewhere and with Ollie Fisher out injured for the rest of the season and Josh Nichol unavailable, debuts were given to Andrew Millen and Jamie Barnwell-Edinboro.

Leek began the game positively and Jake Turner pushed the ball out for a corner kick on the left but this was well defended.

At the other end, Anthony Bowsley's free kick was headed away from goal to set up a right wing counter attack. 

Leek continued to show most threat down their right wing and a corner kick from Matt Bell went straight across the face of Jake Turner's goal. 

 Brigg almost took the lead after half an hour when Scott Matthews struck a free kick from outside the penalty area against the upright with 'keeper Ben Turner beaten. 

The response again came down the right wing with Dan Smith moving up to support John Johnston, winning a right wing corner kick but this was cleared to send the teams in at half time on level terms.

In the opening minutes of the second half, Leek's Tim Grice missed out in front of goal from John Johnston's cross. Then Paul Ashton got forward for Brigg but sliced his shot wide of the goal. 

The opening goal came a minute after Ben Mills replaced Niall Maguire after fifty-five minutes. Inevitably, it came from a right wing cross to the far post where TIM GRICE met the ball to head it into the top corner of the net. 

This goal began a period of dominance for the visitors against a tiring home team. Jake Turner saved well to keep Brigg in the hunt for a point and the home team was still well in the game until the seventy-second minute when Scott Matthews slipped to the ground  and BEN MILLS  headed home another right wing cross into the top corner for a well taken goal  five minutes after striker Tim Grice had been substituted by Sam Hall.

BEN MILLS headed home his second goal from a right wing free kick in the eightieth minute and  then five minutes completed his hat-trick by heading home from a right wing corner kick.

Although Brigg finished well beaten by league championship contenders, great credit goes to the whole squad who played so well as a team for two thirds of the game.

Brigg Town: Turner, Bowskin, Matthews, Bowsley, Hellewell, Millen, Flint, Peers, Barwell-Edinboro, Ashton, Broughton. Subs: Buttle (75 mins), Lamb (46) and Matt Muldoon (65) for Broughton, Flint and Peers;    Greg Carroll ands Rob Zand not used.

Attendance:  115.