Hambleton Black Sheep Brewery League Division Two

Barton FC 2 Kildale 6

KILDALE lived up to their billing as pre-season favourites to make an instant return to division one in this delayed opening day triumph at Church Lane, Barton on Sunday of last week.

Having only just failed to avoid the drop at the end of last season, the visitors looked determined to get their promotion push off to the best possible start and they took the lead inside 90 seconds.

Barton were caught sleeping at the back and Jamie Atkinson had time and space at the far post to fire home a left-wing free kick from Thomas Nichols. But the hosts, who will also be hoping to be among the teams chasing promotion to the top flight this season, hit back almost immediately when a long throw from the right by Ray Headon was not dealt with by the Kildale defence, and Tom Graham arrived to bundle the ball home from close range in the fifth minute.

On a flat, slick surface the frantic pace of the match continued and the visitors regained the lead in the 18th minute when a free-kick from Stephen Pennock found fellow defender Simon Williams completely unmarked eight yards out and he coolly placed the ball past stranded keeper Steve Madden.

But this time the lead lasted less then a minute as virtually straight from the restart Graham turned neatly on the edge of the Kildale area before firing his second past keeper Joe Wintershalden with a shot that went in off the right hand upright.

Barton then thought they had taken the lead for the first time in the 27th minute when a great cross from the right by Gary Walker found the head of Gareth Davies ten yards out, but Wintershalden was down quickly to his right to keep the scores level.

However it was Kildale who went in front for a third time six minutes later after some more suicidal defending from the hosts. Alex Brisley did well down the right hand side but the ball was only half cleared and Andrew Bailey arrived to smash it past Madden from eight yards.

This time, it was the visitors who wasted little time in adding to their total and again it was a combination of good work from Brisley and some poor defending from Barton that allowed Gareth Williams to drill the ball into the net from the edge of the area in the 37th minute.

Any hope the hosts had of getting back into the match were as good as over two minutes before the break, when Pennock hit a superb free-kick from 35 yards that sailed over the head of Madden and into the top corner of the net for a truly memorable goal.

The hosts regrouped during the interval and looked far more solid in the second half but the damage had already been done and Kildale were now firmly in control. In truth the second half was a disappointment after the excitement of the first but the visitors still played some nice football.

They came close to increasing their lead seven minutes after the restart when Simon Williams sent brother Gareth clear but Madden was out quickly to deny him, while Atkinson's follow up from a tight angle came back off the post.

Kildale did have the ball in the net again in the 55th minute when a free-kick from the left by Atkinson came back off the inside of the post and Pennock arrived to bundle both the ball and Madden over the line from close range, but referee Andy Foster was on the spot to rule it out for a foul on the Barton keeper.

However the visitors did add a sixth three minutes later when a lovely move down the left involving Gareth Williams, brother Simon and Brisley ended with Gareth Williams firing home from the edge of the area.

Barton refused to roll over and played some neat, passing football of their own but the nearest they came to reducing the arrears was when Graham came close to completing his hat-trick on the hour. He did well to beat the Kildale offside trap but rolled his shot just the wrong side of the left hand upright with Wintershalden beaten.

Then at the other end, Gareth Williams was even closer to completing a hat-trick of his own when he chipped the ball over the advancing Madden 20 minutes from time only for the ball to come back off the post. He went close again in the final minute when his shot from the edge of the area beat Madden but curled just the wrong side of the post after good work by Atkinson had created the opportunity.