A fourth defeat on the trot proved to be a further setback in Beechfield United’s topsy-turvy season in the FBT Manchester Football League.
United lost 5-2 away to Heywood St James but despite producing a gutsy display Beechy were once again let down by some poor defending. On a pitch looking in good condition at kick-off United faced some early pressure from a Heywood side who quickly adopted the long ball tactic and Rob Lockley and Man of the Match Luke Johnston made several vital headed clearances in the opening ten minutes.
Chris Ferris, Steve Erskine and Craig Massey worked hard in midfield but Beechy struggled to create enough clear cut chances. Despite the difficult conditions both teams attempted to produce an entertaining match and twice Heywood came close to taking the lead but gradually United forced some vital defending from the home team.
A swerving cross by Mike Leach was headed off the goal line but when the ball dropped to Alex Hunter he shot wide of the target then minutes later the same player forced a fine save from the Heywood keeper but Craig Massey failed to net the rebound. There was a frantic pace to the contest and slightly against the run of play Heywood St James went 1-0 up close to half time.
The second half was just two minutes old when United got back level courtesy of a fine solo run by Jamie Sinnott who displayed footwork before he hammered the ball home from 20 yards. As the heavy rain continued the pitch slowly deteriorated and the players were prone to making mistakes especially in the muddy areas in midfield. Forced to do more unwanted defending Beechy somehow gifted Heywood a 2-1 lead in the 69th minute and United made a couple of tactical changes after the goal. Beechy found a second equaliser when a corner taken by Jamie Sinnott resulted in the ball deflecting off Craig Massey then the keeper and into the corner of the net. Producing an instant response Heywood punished United for some bad defending by regaining the lead and on 81 minutes with the pitch taking its toll on some of the Beechy players Heywood scored goal number four.
United conceded a another gifted goal when Heywood’s No10 completed the scoring via a close range finish inside the last three minutes.
Making it five successive wins were the Saturday Morning Senior Team who beat Parswood Thursday 7-3 at Salford Sports Village. Straight from the start United found a good rhythm and dominating possession opened the scoring after ten minutes. The ball was moved quickly down the left flank and a great pass from Tim McQueeney sent Max Leonard racing clear and United’s leading goalscorer finished superbly. Using the full width of the artificial surface Beechy produced some brilliant football and led 2-0 on twenty two minutes.
A pinpoint cross from Scott Foulds was misjudged by the Parswood keeper and a defender and the unmarked Max Leonard was left with a simple finish. The pressure was relentless as Beechy’s attacking onslaught continued to give Parswood’s back four a torrid time and on the half-hour mark Tim McQueeney supplied another excellent pass and Max Leonard made it 3-0 as he completed his hat-trick. A long range effort on 35 minutes ended up in the back of the Beechy net and United’s star studded display was soured again two minutes before the break when Parswood scored a similar goal.
Beechy made a couple of changes for the second half but their free flowing football was missing as they struggled to play with the same freedom. For long periods Parswood looked the better team and heaped heavy pressure on United’s defence of Andy Lord, Daniel Eckersley, Chris Lucas and Kyle Wray. But Beechy slowly regained control of the match and a four goals in the last seven minutes sealed what ended up as an emphatic victory. Scott Foulds made it 4-2 then two goals in as many minutes from Man of the Match Max Leonard brought his personal tally to five.
Roy Owen scored the seventh goal and in the closing seconds Parswood were awarded a third goal despite a foul on United’s keeper.
