SEATON DELAVAL 2  ALNWICK TOWN 3

If it was entertainment you were looking for Seaton Delaval wouldn’t be on any one's list on a wet Wednesday night. But for those that did manage to make it you could not have witnessed a more action packed game made more farsical by the three officials.

Delaval are one of this seasons title favourites having finished third in the premiership last year and were looking to grab maximum points against Alnwick.

Alnwick had Stephen Rutter and Danny Lowes making their first starts of the season along with Neil Macfarlane making the line up from the start.

Both teams started at a high tempo and it was Brooks called into action first, tipping a long range effort onto the post after 8 mins. On 10 mins Rutter ended his nights work coming off with a knee injury and soon after Lang joined him with a pulled hamstring.

On 25 mins Delaval went in front a good move on the left was crossed in to the path of a Jeff Fuller to fire home from six yards out.

Lowes brought a great save from the Delaval keeper cutting in from the right and flashing a powerful shot across the face of goal.

Brooks in the Alnwick goal was then deliberately stamped on after collecting a through ball, the referee, to the disbelief of everyone never even booked the player who clearly should have been shown a straight red card.

Brooks was then involved in a Calamity James moment on 40 mins collecting a ball played back to him as he stopped the ball with his foot he slipped and the ball ran loose to the Delaval forward to tap it home for their second, not the best time to concede just before the interval.

If Alnwick learnt one thing from Saturdays game against Shankhouse it was that you can come back and nothing is guaranteed in football. On 55 mins Paul Yeadon was fouled at the backpost for a penalty and up stepped the experienced Tom Vickers who coolly placed it wide of the keeper to throw Alnwick a lifeline.

Alnwick were right back in the game and were on top, Macfarlane just failing to make contact at the back post from a Lowes cross.

Macfarlane was then crudely tackled and how the Delaval player stayed on the field remains one of the mysteries of the night.

The referee did manage to get the red card out though on 75 mins sending off Alnwicks Kevin Elliot for dissent for disagreeing with him on a decision of a throw in. This should have been the end for Alnwick, down to ten men and a mountain to climb, but it worked the opposite as Alnwick became stronger and equalised on 80 mins with the move of the game involving  Mark Cockburn, Danny Lowes and  Dale Kennedy who eventually got to the by line and delivered a superb cross to Vickers to plant a  header powerfully wide  of the Delaval keeper who stood rooted to the spot.

Delaval had a couple of breaks but Alnwick defenders Patterson, Murray and Catlow were superb and one tremendous tackle from front man Kennedy who covered 60 yards to make the tackle  as Delaval broke summed up the determination of the team.

As the light was closing in fast and the rain coming down heavier you couldn’t have wrote the script better, on 85mins Vickers cut in from the left beating two defenders and firing a superb 25 yard shot hard and low into the corner of the net with the keeper at full stretch he couldn’t get a hand to it and Vickers completed his hat trick to the delight of the away support and players.

Alnwick saw out the last 5 mins for a superb second half display and tremendous three points.

Pizza Royale MOM Tom Vickers

TEAM   B BROOKS, G PATTERSON, N CATLOW, S RUTTER, D LOWES, B MURRAY, P YEADON, M COCKBURN, J LANG, N MACFARLANE, T VICKERS, K ELLIOT, D KENNEDY, M SAUNDERS.