A tussle in AFC Emley’s 3-2 win at Worsbrough Bridge
AFC Emley’s promotion hopes are still alive after Darren Hepworth’s men survived a late scare in the 3-2 victory at Worsbrough Bridge.
Emley were cruising at half-time, but the Welfare Grounders allowed Worsbrough back into the Toolstation NCEL Division One clash which set up a nervy finish.
Emley had to win, otherwise their ambitions of finishing in the top two would have been totally over.
They still need a bit of luck as Clipstone beat Yorkshire Amateur to go within two wins of the Premier Division.
Clipstone also have four games left, while Pontefract can secure their rise at Lincoln Moorlands Railway tomorrow afternoon.
Threadbare Worsbrough nearly did Clipstone a huge favour, despite the half-time score-line.
Emley appeared to be cruising to victory after laying into their hosts early-on.
Jordan Townend’s long range blast was blocked by 17-year-old goalkeeper Josh Lane and Doran Jordan pounced to score from the rebound.
Brad Kerr, who returned from his five-match ban on Tuesday night, missed a good chance from close range and also lost a battle of wills with Emley’s goalkeeper Gary Stevens in a one-on-one situation.
Emley took heed of the warning and Max Leonard soon added the second with a good finish close to the half-hour mark.
Lane then mis-judged a back-pass from Daniel Hoyland and that put Emley three-up and seemingly on their way to a heavy win.
Referee Lee Bible sent Worsbrough’s Liam Owen off in the 85th minute
Liam Owen (left) was sent off after questioning the referee’s integrity
However, Emley just never got going in the second half. Admit-ably Ash Flynn fired wide from a good position – a chance that would have put the game to bed.
Worsbrough went straight down the other end and Adam Askwith pulled a goal back.
It got a bit jittery for Emley, especially when young Liam Owen was able to score for Bridge with 15 minutes still on the clock.
Emley managed to hold on and they were massively helped by the dismissal of Owen. The youngster saw red after questioning the referee’s impartiality.
The final whistle completed an interesting night for Emley, whose under 19s won their league without playing and their development squad lost their cup final.
It was also a better evening for assistant referee Natasha Wilson. The official fulfilled the same role in the controversial clash between Knaresborough Town and Winterton Rangers which was incredibly abandoned in added time after a mass brawl.
Worsbrough Bridge manager Dave Mace:
“The players were tremendous, I couldn’t asked for more.
“At half-time when we were three-down they could have so easily buried their heads in the second half.
“We told them at half-time to try and get the next goal. I knew they would going uphill.
“We could have been staring down the barrel of a big defeat if we hadn’t.
“They showed a lot of character and to say we had a lot of players missing we did very well.”
AFC Emley manager Darren Hepworth:
“We made hard work of it in the end.
“It was always going to be tough on a difficult pitch, but having gone 3-0 up, you expect to see it out.
“Give credit to Worsbrough because they never gave up and they always had a threat going forward.
“When they got two back they made it interesting for the neutral, but it was heart attack city for people like me.”
Worsbrough Bridge: Lane, Miskell (Colton 60), Hoyland, Kokot (captain), Thompson, Evans, Warren, Stuart, Askwith, Kerr, Owen. Subs unused: Taylor.
AFC Emley: Stevens, Brook, Starkey, Leech, S Jerome, Sykes, Townend, Leonard, Flynn, R Jerome (Truelove 65), Jordan (Waller 56). Subs unused: Tunnacliffe, Lawlor.
Referee: Lee Hible
Ref Rating: 8/10
Attendance: 109
Man of the match: Jordan Townend (AFC Emley)