Boundary Park, Tuesday 19 Feb 2019, League 2, 7.45pm.

Attendance – 4218 with 337 away Shrimps, great noise.

Ref Andy Haines – loves centre backs, can tackle from behind, elbow and shirt pull to their hearts content if you play for Scholesy, but it’s a free kick if Bennett does the same back. was crap for both sides other than that.

Weather – awful, drizzly all match, and the pitch was terrible, looked like they had been holding show jumping on it.

Halstead, Mills Old Sutton Conlan Kenyon c Cranston Mendes Gomes Ellison Mingoia Bennett subs used Mandy for Carlos MG on 65, Collins for Bennett 74, Oates for Ellison 84.

Latics – Iversen Edmudson Clark c  Stott Hunt Baxter Sylla Missilou Nepumunceno O’Grady Branger subs used Dearnley for Stott 50, Maouche for Sylla 60, Vera for O’Grady 76.

Both teams took time to adapt to the atrocious conditions. However the Shrimps marauded forward and with their first attack took the lead. Mingoia tortured Stott and his back post cross was returned by Bennett, it missed out everyone again and Mingoia’s pull back this time found Cranston whose side foot whizzed high past a diving Iversen. 0-1. Gomes had chance to double the lead but Iversen was alert to his powerful header which he punched away. O’Grady had a diving header off target which he should have done better with and Baxter had a shot saved as the Latics woke up. Cranston forced Iversen to tip over his free kick after a foul on Kev, and Edmudson had a deflected effort tipped wide by Halstead as the game ebbed and flowed.

After the break the game meandered, Oldham probing but finding the pitch difficult to pass and move on, subs came on and finally on 76 Baxter ghosted onto a Nepumuceno cross to head home an equaliser. Mills decided to try his luck after a great run from his own half but shot over and Mingoia had a 25 yard stinging drive smuggled to safety after Iversen palmed away. Vera looped a header which Halstead tipped over and then Old cleared a Clark header from just in front of goal as both teams went looking for a winner as we entered stoppage time.

Mingoia was patient creating space down the right, he cut inside and made to pass sideways to Cranston but instead flicked an outside of the foot pass to the tricky Mandeville, he turned his man inside out and looked up to find the free Collins who mis kicked into the bottom left corner to hand us another three points and another win!! The 337 went mad, the noise was deafening, we saw out time confutable, for a change, and you’d have thought we had had won the cup when the whistle went.

Great attacking subs tonight, we went for it, knowing that at 1-1, we must try to win and create pressure below us. As for Aaron Collins, another game, another goal, scuffed or not!!

Great turn out and noise from the away end, all 14 man gave their all and it showed how they celebrated.

Onwards to the table topping Imps at home, mmmm confidence is up, this could be interesting??

Freez.