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Northampton Town v Aldershot: Jefferson Lake’s verdict – Late woe for Cobblers by encouraging signs
FOR the second season in a row, the Cobblers were denied victory at Aldershot – only this time, it happened so, so late in the day.
Town looked to have done enough to secure a 1-0 win, with Billy McKay providing a first-half lead that was not cancelled out until the final minute of added time.
Referee Graham Scott put a minimum of four minutes of injury time on his board – four minutes and 38 seconds later, the home side had the ball in the back of the net.
The result will have left a bitter taste in the mouths of everyone in the Cobblers camp, but this was an encouraging performance at the end of a week of woe.
They finally ended their drought of goals in open play in the league, and Liam Davis provided good cover at left-back, using his pace to good effect in what should have been a clean sheet.
The overwhelming feeling in the dressing room and on the supporters’ coaches on the way back to Northampton, though, will have been one of disappointment.
Without doubt, a draw would have been seen as a good result before the game. Having led the match for so long, it will have felt like a defeat.
McKay’s goal came after half an hour, and with both sides having already enjoyed a good chance to break the deadlock.
Marvin Morgan, who was a real thorn in Northampton’s side last season, gave notice of his ability to carry the ball at speed when he drove through the visiting defence and hammered a shot goalwards.
Chris Dunn was equal to it at his near post, although no keeper should ever really be beaten there.
Jamie Young at the other end then produced a good block when he rushed to Steve Guinan’s feet after the veteran striker had broken clear from John Johnson’s long ball over the top.
The directness of that piece of play was balanced out by the exquisite passing that produced the goal. Twice play was switched from the left to the right wing, with Michael Jacobs eventually slipping the ball into McKay in the box.
No Shots defender will be happy that they allowed the Corby boy to manipulate the ball onto his right foot, McKay stroking it beyond Young’s left hand with ice-blooded coolness.
Both teams continued to attack, and the hosts really should have levelled when Wade Small raced away from the defence only for Dean Beckwith to produce a fine covering tackle on the slide.
The home side began the second half at a lively pace with former Cobblers man Luke Guttridge breaking forward to strike a shot that required a brave block from Beckwith to keep out.
Davis, playing as an emergency left-back, then tracked his marker and slid in to deny Small a tap-in after a Morgan raid down the left.
For all his good defending, Beckwith failed to make an impact in attack, the defender fluffing his lines when arriving unmarked at the back post from Jacobs’ fine free-kick.
Northampton had to weather a real storm in the final 10 minutes as the home side gave them the kitchen-sink treatment, Andy Holt forced into a couple of fine blocks on the stretch to prevent the ball from troubling Dunn.
The keeper was given something to do on the stroke of full-time, doing superbly to hold a low Morgan shot after the striker had spun his man.
The chances continued to come deep into stoppage time.
Panic struck in the Town defence and the ball fell to Damian Spencer, who skewered a shot horribly over the bar under pressure from Davis.
But with all four of the allotted minutes played, the visitors blocked two shots but not a third as Ben Harding crashed a loose ball into the net.
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Weather for King's Lynn
Monday 28 May 2012
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