Consett AFC 4 v 0 Bridlington Town
By Alexander Fynn
Bridlington Town headed north to Consett in the hope of picking up another vital 3 points as they were looking to move further away from the relegation zone. After last week’s victory away at Pontefract, Bridlington were high on confidence heading into this clash.
Head coach Mike Thompson only made one change to his starting 11 from last week’s 3-2 victory, with Tom Allan replacing Josh Barratt due to illness. Striker Michael Coulson was on the bench, returning from injury.
However, it was the hosts that were first to strike as Brandon Holdsworth precisely slotted the ball into the bottom corner through a David Allasan pass. Allasan doubled Consett’s lead when Charlie Exley fired a through ball to the number 7, and the winger powerfully hit the ball past Seasiders keeper Jack Hall. With around 20 minutes played, the Steelmen made it 3-0 as Holdsworth chipped the ball over the Bridlington stopper Lewis from a lobbed pass.
The Seasiders struggled with the Consett attack and had to be patient before they had their first shot on goal as Dan Hartley whipped in a right-footed cross to Benn Lewis, but the midfielder headed the ball just over the bar. Bridlington were forced into a first-half substitution when center back Matty Dixon was replaced by Ahmed Salam due to a tight hamstring.
Sam Leverett had an opportunity to get the Seasiders on the scoresheet as Sam Kay was instrumental in winning the ball back from Consett. The midfielder accurately passed the ball to Leverett; however, his shot was agonizingly wide of the post.
Early in the second half, Holdsworth had a chance to complete his hat-trick. Orrell calmly passed the ball to the Consett number 9, but his opportunity rattled off the crossbar.
Mike Thompson rang the changes with a double substitution. Dan Hartley came off for Nathan Dyer, and Sam Kay came off for Michael Coulson.
Both men made an immediate impact for the Seasiders as Dyer fired in a cross to the returning striker in a superb passage of play, with Coulson backheeling the ball to Charlie Winfield. However, the number 3 scuffed the ball over the bar. Billy Ripley then replaced striker Danny Earl.
Defender Tom Allan had a chance to score for the Seasiders as Dyer fired in a cross to the middle. Allan met the ball, but his shot was over the bar. Michael Coulson also had a chance to find a late consolation as Winfield whipped in a cross to the substitute, but Coulson’s header came to nothing.
Consett had the final say in the scoring. Matthew Todd was one-on-one with the Bridlington number 1, and the substitute made it 4-0, resulting in a miserable afternoon for the Queensgate men.
Head coach Mike Thompson had this to say after the match: “It’s a strange one. We’ve been beaten 4-0, and we’ve played a lot worse and only been beaten 1-0 or 2-1. It took us too long to work out the system and how they played. I think when we did that, we had more joy, but the only problem was that we were 3-0 down.”
The Seasiders remain in the NPL East relegation zone after this defeat. Next week, Bridlington Town head back home to the Mounting Systems stadium to face Sherwood Colliery, who are also sitting in the NPL East relegation zone.
