WHITLEY BAY 2 WEST AUCKLAND TOWN 1
Saturday 28th December 2024
Report by Julian Tyley
Two goals inside the last ten minutes turned this game on its head and earned Whitley a dramatic victory over West Auckland in their final game of 2024.
Most of the fans in the near 400 crowd at Hillheads must have been fearing a disappointing defeat as the minutes ticked by but not so the players who never gave up and produced the most exciting finale to a game for some time, with the winning goal coming in the fourth minute of stoppage time.
It was a tough ask for both sides coming just 48 hours after both had been involved in Boxing Day fixtures and with the pitch inevitably heavy having had little time to recover from Thursday’s game.
Suspension and unavailability resulted in a number of changes to the Bay side that conceded a last gasp equaliser against West Allotment two days earlier, with striker Guy Bates making only his second appearance for the club.
In contrast to Thursday, when shots on goal during the first half were at a premium, both sides looked to attack from the start. With just five minutes played, Kyle Davis got a header on goal which Dan Gladstone pushed wide. Four minutes later, Meeshi Kanda played the ball through to Alfa Djalo who saw his attempt pushed over the bar by Auckland keeper Nick Liversedge. Barely a minute later, Kanda produced a diving header from a right wing cross and his attempt beat the keeper but grazed the outside the post and went behind.
Two attempts from Callum Larmouth, the first a volley from inside the box, failed to find the target. Back at the other end, a shot from Bailey only just cleared the bar.
Just past the half hour, Djalo played the ball across goal for Kanda whose shot was blocked and flew high over the bar for a corner.
The visitors then had a spell of attacking play, with a corner initially cleared then several shots blocked or deflected but not fully cleared. When the ball was played across from the right to the left edge of the six yard box, Charlie Wood fired it home at the near post to give Auckland the lead.
On the stroke of half time, Joe Robson poked the ball into the net but the flag was raised for offside and the goal did not stand, leaving the visitors one goal ahead at the break.
Luke Parkinson, who had been playing a midfield role, was replaced by Matty Griggs shortly before the hour mark and the youngster was to play a significant role in the latter stages of the game.
For a while, play was largely a midfield battle with Whitley struggling to break down a stubborn Auckland defence while the visitors made little impression on the Bay rearguard.
A second substitution with 16 minutes remaining helped turn the game in Whitley’s favour with the introduction of Kyle Cockburn. His pace and strength down the right wing stretched the visitors and pushed them back on the defensive where they seemed content to hold on to their narrow lead.
Nine minutes from time, Liversedge went to punch clear Larmouth’s left wing corner but failed to get sufficient contact and the ball fell to Cockburn on the right edge of the box. Twisting and turning past his marker, he fired a low shot through a crowd of defenders and the ball crashed off the base of the post. Kanda reacted quickly, firing the rebound home from close range to the delight of the Bay fans.
Back on level terms, the game was now set for a grandstand finish as both sides went in search of a winner. Robinson and Bailey both had attempts on goal for Auckland who so nearly regained the lead with three minutes left with a shot from out on the right that struck the post before bouncing away to safety.
Returning to the other end, Whitley won a free kick on the right when Guy Bates was impeded. Cockburn’s free kick towards the back post was met by a powerful header from Kanda and it took a brilliant diving save from Liversedge to push the ball wide. The resultant corner was met by Larmouth whose first time effort flew wide of goal.
Whitley were getting the upper hand now and continued to press forward as the game entered added time.
Griggs was tugged down by defender Eckley-Aldsworth as he went for a high ball played towards the edge of the West Auckland box from midfield. The free kick from a few yards outside the D was taken by Larmouth who caught the defensive wall by surprise, playing it along the ground into the bottom corner of the net as the Auckland men jumped anticipating a high shot.
The goal sent the Bay fans into raptures of delight while the players celebrated what was a tremendous comeback, comfortably seeing out the remaining seconds to claim a quite dramatic victory.
After conceding a last gasp equaliser just two days earlier, the success was all the sweeter and not surprisingly it was Larmouth, having delivered the perfect late Christmas present for his team, who was named man of the match.
WHITLEY BAY: Gladstone, Brady(Cockburn 74mins) Christie, Parkinson(Griggs 57mins), Scott, Robson, Stewart, Kanda, Bates, Djalo, Larmouth
Substitutes not used: Crawford, Wilson, Thompson
Referee: Tom Lishman
Cautions: None
Attendance: 389
