
Two of Greater Manchester’s National League sides were in action this weekend, with contrasting results for both Stockport County and Curzon Ashton.
Credit: Stockport County
John Rooney’s 16th minute strike was enough to give Stockport County their first victory of the 2021/22 season, with the Hatters toppling recently relegated Southend United 1-0.
Creating space for himself on the edge of the box, last season’s National League player of the year opened his account for this campaign with a sharp finish beyond Steve Arnold in the Shrimpers’ goal. Lighting up Roots Hall in an illuminous pink away strip, Stockport excited in front of the BT Sport television cameras, controlling possession for much of the first period.
Fighting back in the second half, Phil Brown’s men created a number of chances for themselves, yet the home side were met by an impenetrable County defence. Marshalled by colossal centre-half Ash Palmer, Stockport were able to thwart Southend’s late pressure to secure their first three points of the campaign.
An instant response for County after their disappointing opening day defeat to Dagenham & Redbridge, Simon Rusk will be keen to see his side extend their strong form against another League 2 dropout in Grimsby Town on Tuesday evening.
Curzon Ashton were unable to add to their early-season points haul, with the Nash conceding a dramatic injury-time goal away to Boston United.
Credit: Boston United/ Russel Dosset/ SportsPictures.online
Having equalised in the 85th minute through former Stockport winger Adam Thomas, ten men Curzon had thought they’d rescued a point at York Street, yet Fraser Preston struck in the 92nd-minute to give the home side three points. Cameron Wilson was harshly shown his marching orders after 57 minutes, yet it didn't stop a spirited Nash side push on for a result.
Danny Elliot had put the home side ahead from the spot midway through the first half, with the Pilgrims coming close on a number of occasions after that. Chris Renshaw was forced into a number of saves for Curzon throughout the opening 45 minutes, yet the Curzon shot-stopper stood tall to deny the Boston onslaught.
Speaking to Curzon’s YouTube channel after the match, manager Steve Cunningham believed his side deserved more than they ended up with:
“Not a great first half, fantastic second half and then the cruel part of football kicks in. Unfortunately I’ve got a group of lads in there with their heads down despite me telling them I’m really proud of them”.
For Curzon, further tough tests are around the corner, with Darlington the visitors to Tameside on bank holiday, before a trip to face Leamington next weekend.
Users must be 18+. If you are having trouble with gambling then help and advice can be found at begambleaware.org. Please Play Responsibly.
Trading financial products carries a high risk to your capital, especially trading leverage products such as CFDs. CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.