Salford continued their push for double promotion by settling a comfortable 2-0 home win over Buxton on Saturday.
Goals from debutant Josh Hine and Joe Johnson secured the club’s fifth win in seven games.
It means the gap between The Ammies and league leaders Blyth Spartans stays at four points.
Josh Hine made his debut game one to remember with a productive attacking performance that caused major issues for Buxton’s defence.
The Ammies’ most recent acquisition rounded off his performance with a close range strike ten minutes from half time, after a solid string of passing play.
Read: Salford City land super striker Josh Hine
The visitors almost leveled the game moments later when a whipped corner was delivered in the box by Spencer Harris; top scorer Liam Hardy looked certain to score from a powerful header.
However, a dramatic headed clearance by captain Chris Lynch kept Salford’s lead intact.
Salford continued to have the lion’s share of the opportunities though, with Hine continuing to pose a threat from set pieces.
The 24-year-old almost added a second on 42 minutes thanks to a cross from Tunji Moses, but his header was easily stopped by Matt Glennon.
On the brink of half time Salford doubled their lead – after a vital defensive challenge by former Ireland international Steve O’Halloran, Salford launched a lightning counter attack capped off by Joe Johnson’s effort from outside the box that curled past Glennon.
Steve O’Halloran – By Charlotte Tattersall
In the second half Salford continued to pile the pressure on the visitors and could have made it 3-0 when Jordan Hulme made a lung-busting run before delivering the ball to Hine’s feet.
The former Chorley player fired a powerful shot into the penalty area that was blocked but fell to Salford substitute Joe Mwasile who had a crack himself, forcing a superb save from Glennon.
Hine had two other decent chance on 63 and 70 minutes: for the first he was one on one with the Buxton keeper after a midfield through-ball, but Matt Glennon did superbly to anticipate the striker’s touch allowing him to clear the ball before before Hine could drop the shoulder.
Seven minutes later Hine again used his power and pace to hold off Buxton defenders. Anticipating danger, Glennon surged out of his area to claim the ball.
Yet the inside forward sensed this beautifully, pulling off a chipped effort that went over the veteran goalkeeper’s head, only to be denied by the post.
Buxton sense an opportunity to come back into the game close to the 80 minute mark when substitute Ash Burbury made a counter-attacking run from a Salford corner, but his advances were stopped by a vital challenge by Chris Lynch.
Jordan Hulme – By Charlotte Tattersall
Despite the win, Salford joint managers Anthony Johnson and Bernard Morley will he concerned with another pending suspension.
Gary Stopforth became the second Salford player to be sent off this month, picking up a second yellow in the 82nd minute after a rash challenge on Alistair Taylor.
Salford look the complete package as the season reaches its business end
January has been a productive month for The Ammies and as the month has gone by, Salford look to be the only side in the Northern Premier who can take the fight to league leaders Blyth Spartans.
One could argue that Darlington 1883 are in a false position, having only played 22 games.
We saw last year that The Quakers are developing a habit of falling short in the games that matter, and with such a backlog of games to play following a torrential Christmas period the pressure of falling short to Salford in the title race could come back to haunt them.
Blyth will meet Salford on Tuesday in Northumberland for a potential title-deciding match. Considering how well Salford performed in the second half of last year’s campaign, it would be hard not to back them for the league title if they win at Croft Park.
Hine puts in a Cantona-esque performance to provide cover up front
When the former RAF serviceman signed for Salford, there was optimism that the inside forward would continue his form that saw him score 12 goals at National League North level this season.
His performance today certainly lived up to that star billing.
The forward suited Salford’s counter attacking game perfectly; providing width and dynamism to The Ammies attack and interchanging well Jordan Hulme and Joe Mwasile to provide a dynamic threat going forward.
His debut goal may have been a scrappy one, but it was duly deserved from a player who worked so hard throughout today’s game.
His chipped efforts had shades of Cantona’s effort against Sunderland 20 years ago, although sadly for Hine, he couldn’t rely on the post to finish the job. Johnson and Morley now have the difficult task of choosing a consistent strike partnership between Hine, Danny Webber, Jordan Hulme and James Poole.
Yet with all four being in such good form, any combination looks certain to get goals.
Chris Lynch puts in a captain’s performance at the back
Despite the style and swagger Salford have going forward, they would be a much less cohesive team without their skipper.
Lynch proved why he is one of the division’s elite defenders: a goal-line clearance and a vital challenge ended attacks that could have seen the visitors claw their way back into the match.
With the glut of goals that the Moor Lane faithful have been treated to the past few weeks, it’s easy to wax lyrical about the attacking prowess that The Ammies possess, yet the fact that they have only conceded three goals since Christmas is testament to the importance of Lynch to Salford.
Should Salford go on to win the league again this year, then as much praise should be heaped on him as it is put on the flair players at The Ammies.
Salford City (4-3-3): J Lynch, Gumbs, O’Halloran, Stopforth, Howson, C Lynch [c], Johnston, Moses (Clark ‘70) , Hine (Seddon ‘86), Poole (Mwasile ‘41)
Scorers: Hine ‘35, Johnston ‘45
Subs not used: Dawson, Clarke, Webber
Sent off: Stopforth (second yellow) ‘82
Buxton: (4-4-2), Glennon, Belzikea (Wiles ‘87), Green, Ravenhill, J Bembo-Lita, Young [c], Taylor, Harris, Barraclough, Hardy, Doran (Burbeary ‘52).
Subs not used: F Bembo-Lita, Grayson, Wright.
Referee: Mr Mark Cunliffe (Merseyside)
Main image: Josh Hine on debut by Charlotte Tattersall
