Nantwich Town 5
Formby 1
League (NW Counties League Div 1)

Match Report

Nantwich Town 5 Formby 1
NWCFL Div 1 – 2/10/04

Nantwich notched their second home league win of the week – and season – with a five star display against a poor Formby side struggling at the base of the table.
The Dabbers applied early pressure, forcing a sequence of corners with Paul Rutter and Michael Owen both putting headers wide of the mark. With the wind behind them, Nantwich made all the running but their visitors held out until 10 minutes before half-time. Then, Ashley Lawton centred from the right and when the Merseysiders failed to clear, Danny Griggs was on hand to fire home from 15 yards.
Formby keeper Phil Somerfield blocked Ashley Lawton’s strike just before the break but, after the interval, Nantwich capitalised on their superiority with two goals in three minutes.
On 51 minutes, Owen’s ball found Griggs down the left and when the Nantwich skipper cut inside and clipped the ball into the danger area, Lawton was on hand to nod home from close range. Then, Andy Parkinson played an incisive ball through the middle which Rutter latched on to and drilled past Somerfield.
Somerfield made an acrobatic save from Griggs but the Dabbers then took their foot off the gas, allowing Neal Smith to get an acrobatic volley sail just over from Paul Guy’s cross. Then, on 75 minutes, John Davies skimmed the ball into the corner of the net to pull a goal back for the visitors with referee Mr Cummins choosing to overrule the linesman’s raised flag.
Rutter hooked the ball over the bar when well-placed after Parkinson had done well on a mazy run and, at the other end, Billy Knowles shot wide and a long range effort from Stuart Keir failed to trouble Simon Pay in the home goal.
With three minutes remaining, Nantwich went 4-1 up when substitute Adam Landstrom pounced on a loose ball after Somerfield had parried Rutter’s shot and two minutes later they went nap when Rutter again broke through and rounded Somerfield before slotting home his second of the game.
A deserved victory for the Dabbers and, having netted just 7 goals in their first 11 games, they have added another 7 in their last two.
Nantwich: Pay, Brough, Beattie, Owen, Morris, Melling, Lawton (Danny Landstrom,88), Santus, Rutter, Griggs, Parkinson (Adam Landstrom,77).
Formby: Somerfield, Keir, Aitken, Rubbery, Johnson, Guy, Brown (Wilson,55), Knowles, Smith, Bourne (Hooper,77), Davies. Booked: Rubbery (70mins), Davies (85mins)

Match report written by Michael Chatwin