Newton Aycliffe FC v Spennymoor Town

By Paul McGeary
For 96 minutes Newton Aycliffe gave their strong travelling contingent a glimpse of what may come should they succeed in winning promotion to the Northern League’s top flight come April.
For the final 24 minutes however, Jason Ainsley’s reining champions Spennymoor showed the Newtonians that the top table will be a tough place to come and eat at, and surviving on scraps simply won’t be enough to stay there.
Having dispossessed of perennial-Wembley residents Whitley Bay in the last round, Allan Oliver’s side came to The Brewery Field without awe, with many believing the weakened Moors side may be another scalp in what is proving to be a remarkable season for the league’s most recent addition.
Ainsley rested several top names with this weekends FA Vase trip to Poole in mind, but still managed to field former Bay hitman Adam Johnston, Steven Richardson and Alex Francis who plied their trade for Gateshead last term and former Darlington pair, Anth Peacock and Newtonian Chris Mason, skippering the side on his recall.
Perched alongside Ainsley on the pine was a host of changes who would grace any team at this level, with Craig Ruddy, Gavin Cogden, Stephen Capper, Lewis Dodds and top scorer Michael Rae, formerly of Hartlepool United, on hand should things not go the way of the home side.
Oliver recalled Fred Woodhouse to his starting eleven with Craig Mickle coming in up front for former Bishop Auckland and Darlington man Dan Mellanby who dropped to the bench.
Moors started the brighter and with just 90 seconds on the clock Johnston stung the palms of Scott Pocklington with a rasping 20-yard drive which the former Darlington and Newcastle junior did well to push from danger.
Johnston should have scored four minutes later but he skied a back-post header over Pocklington’s goal despite being unmarked just yards from goal as Spennymoor sought an early goal to curb their opponents’ enthusiasm.
The first chance the Aycliffe following had to get off their seats came on 20 minutes when centre-half Mark Peck headed Anth Campbell’s right-wing free-kick fiercely goalwards only to find veteran back-up stopper Simon Bishop in fine form as he tipped the effort over the home bar.
Pocklington was back in action seven minutes later when he superbly denied Christopher Emms with a save that was right out of the top drawer. Fed by Johnston in the right-hand channel, Emms’ sweetly struck 20-yard effort took a slight nick off Peck but Pocklington flung himself to his left to claw the ball from his top corner.
Just as it looked as if Aycliffe had weathered the first-half storm which saw them defend the bias of the Brewery Field slope, Emms slotted his side in front. Francis, a commanding figure in the middle of the park split the visiting defence with an exquisite ball which found the former Middlesbrough trainee ghosting in round the back to coolly finish with 39 minutes gone.
A horrific tackle which ended Elliot Gardner’s game saw the half-time introduction of Mellanby, a change which breathed new life into the division two leaders who finally came out of their shell and started to compete with a side who they gave too much respect to in the opening period.
Mellanby was fashioning half-chances with his ability to hold the ball up on the edge of the box with Paul Broom and Craig Mickle both shooting straight at Bishop around the hour mark.
On 76 minutes Aycliffe rocked their opponents with a deserved equaliser. Campbell and Mellanby linked up well down the left and when the former’s cross found its way to the back post, Mickle sent a timely lob over Bishop’s head into the opposite corner to draw the sides level.
Pocklington was called upon twice in the dying minutes to preserve parity and if tipping Johnston’s well-placed free-kick round the post wasn’t enough, the giant 19-year-old saved his best for last as he somehow kept substitute Rae’s powerful header out of his bottom right-hand corner with just seconds remaining.
As extra-time loomed Aycliffe suffered heartbreak as Peck’s innocuous challenge on Francis saw the linesman assist his referee by flagging for a spot-kick much to the away side’s despair. The previously faultless ex-Gateshead man however struck his penalty wide of the right-hand upright to send the game into the additional period.
Sadly for Aycliffe they were no match for their opponents from there on in as the introductions of Ruddy and Capper gave Moors’ side a more formidable look to it. Within six minutes of the re-start the hosts were thinking of their quarter final trip to Bedlington as Ruddy and Rae capitalised on identical errors in the Aycliffe back-line to put daylight between the sides.
With Oliver’s men chasing the game, Johnston first struck a post before smashing the fourth high past a helpless Pocklington while Ruddy added his second, and Spennymoor’s fifth in the last minute to give the score a very harsh reflection on what was a spirited Aycliffe display.
Star Man – Scott POCKLINGTON
Not just Aycliffe’s best performer, but head and shoulders the best of the 28 men to cross the white line on the evening. If his previous umpteen stops beggared belief, then his final one – the one that kept Rae’s header out – was something out of this world. A truly fantastic evening for the giant stopper, despite the scoreline.