ARMTHORPE 5 v  WELFARE 2

In a busy opening ten minutes Welfare made several chances and should have led inside 30 seconds when Curry misplaced a pass , Lee Parker tried to steer the ball to the unmarked David Dickinson but Curtis got back to make a superb saving tackle . Sanderson did well to keep out Bachelors close range shot and Dickinson got up ahead of keeper Strepham but headed wide . On a rock hard and bumpy surface both sides had trouble controlling the ball ,but Welfare with the breeze at their backs looked sharp up front . Dickinson saw Strepham save his low shot but it was Armthorpe who should have led on 28 minutes .Curry put Jones in and the ex Garforth striker slipped a shot past Sanderson only for Alan Mannion to make a great goaline clearance . Welfare made the most of the escape by snatching a 30th minute lead . Nick Baker put in a long ball that saw David Dickinson head past Strepham only for the ball to come back from the post . LEE PARKER followed up to tap home the rebound . Armthorpe nearly replied when Mattison was harshly booked after winning a 50/50 tackle . Batchelor seeing Sanderson do well to claw out his free kick to Jones who shot into the side netting .

HT 0 - 1 .

The Blues started very well and Parker was unlucky when his strong shot was well held by the keeper . On 50 minutes they doubled the lead thanks to a superb bit of anticipation from DAVID DICKINSON . A long cross from the left appeared to be coasting into Strepham's hands when the Glasshoughton forward came in on his blind side to force a parry . Dickinson was first to react and then drilled the ball home from an acute angle for a great individual goal . Welfare were on top and should have gone on to win comfortably . Instead they sat back and invited Armthorpe on to the attack . With Erskine and Batchelor having increasing possession the home side began to forge chances and on 69 minutes GARY JONES ran through a couple of poor tackles to net . The effect on the Glasshoughton side was traumatic and Armthorpe seemed to be able to run through a vacant midfield to put in a series of telling crosses . On 74 minutes Batchelor's cross was headed home by GARY JONES . A minute later Jones got in a cross that saw Sanderson confronted by the onrushing Batchelor , Hart and DARREN ERSKINE who headed home . 77 minutes saw a remarkable turn around continued as another Batchelor cross saw DARREN ERSKINE net again as he beat the stranded Sanderson with another looping header . The days scoring was completed on 81 minutes when Sanderson spilled a low cross to SIMON GOLIGHTLY who ran it into the net . A dejected Welfare left the field wondering how they had lost so heavily from a winning position .

FT 5 - 2 .

WELFARE ; ARMSTRONG;MANNION,WATSON,CRESSEY,BAKER,MATTISON, CARMODY, EDWARDS,HEWITT,DICKINSON,PARKER : Subs ;JACKSON, DUTTON & DUFTON ; ( All used )