Ashton leave the Gate open

Vodkat Premier Division
Saturday 21st March 2009
Ashton Athletic 0 - 1 Squires Gate

A smash and grab denied Ashton a third victory in a week as a strike from Squires Gate winger Dave Cram 9 minutes from time was enough to take all three points for the visitors.
On a lively Brocstedes Park pitch, and with a strong wind blowing down the field, Ashton were left regretting a handful missed chances throughout the game, failing to take advantage of long periods of dominance especially in the first half.
Ashton started on the front foot and after just 2 minutes Simon Gallanders threaded a ball through the Gate back line to Richard Sharpe and as the ball sat up nicely for Ashton’s recent signing the visiting keeper Andy Speight was lucky to see his attempted close-range lob fall comfortably into his hands, when anything like a composed effort could well have dictated the course of the game.
At the other end, Gate looked lively on the break, with Chris Bennett and Steve Hibbert both being denied by last-ditch tackles by a determined Ashton defence
Gate were forced into defending, with Sharpe and Sherlock both coming close for Ashton but with centre half Wayne Maden outstanding for the visitors Ashton could not force a breakthrough. Despite Ashton’s early dominance clear sights at goal were at a premium as Gate’s midfield worked overtime to support their under pressure defence.
Squires Gate had a penalty shout turned down towards the end of the half when Hibbert fought his way through and into the hosts' area, but off balance the big striker stumbled to the floor and the referee correctly waved play on. Then Gate had to resist another spell of concerted pressure, and although they were able to occasional break clear, their final ball, like their Ashton’s, was frequently misplaced.
The second half saw Gate come into the game more, exploiting the wind which was now in their favour. A long ball from Speight forced the Ashton keeper to fumble, and Cram was dispossessed in the act of firing into the empty net.
Midway through the half Ashton stepped up a gear, and Gate were again forced to defend desperately for quite a while. Si Gallanders, cutting in from the left could have played in Mike Douglas but took the responsibility to shoot from 20 yards, an effort that was sliced off target.
Gradually, Gate fought free of the shackles, and with 15 minutes left the decisive moment came on 81 minutes, when an uncharacteristic error of judgement from Mike Burke, allowing a long clearance to run beyond the Ashton back line, which proved costly. A well timed run from Dave Cram beat the offside wide on the left, and cutting inside the box Cram slotted the ball into the bottom corner from the angle.
Despite the setback Ashton poured men forward in search of an equaliser but committed defending denied the home side. Ashton’s best chance fell to Sharpe but a superb last ditch block from Tome Benfield prevented his keeper from having to deal with a Sharpe volley from 10 yards out.
Moments later, Cram had another chance to make the game safe when he latched onto Bennett's low cross, but the ball flashed the wrong side of the post. Gate were forced to endure a nail biting final few minutes, before the final whistle which saw them leapfrog over Ashton into 6th spot in the league table.
Ashton’s Reserves also suffered a setback against local rivals Wigan Robin Park, going down 3-1, a loss that brings a 13 match unbeaten run to an end.

Both teams are in action on Tuesday evening as the first team start their defence of the Atherton Charity cup with a first round tie at home to Breightmet United FC, 7.30pm KO. Meanwhile the Reserves travel to Bootle FC for a league match 7.45pm KO