Mossley (White & Black)

Durham City (Blue & Red)

 

Eight minutes of madness at the beginning of the first half proved to be Mossley's undoing in an, at times, heated affair with league leaders Durham at Seel Park.

Benefiting from the strong wind blowing against their backs and a catalogue of errors from the home side, strikes from Calvin Smith, Matthew Moffat and Steven Richardson raced their side into a three goal lead with the game barely quarter of an hour old. And had Richardson not wasted two other good opportunities it could have conceivably been a lot worse for the Lilywhites.

After that early blitz the home side began to force their way back into the game and by the time they reached the interval they were starting to look the better of the two teams.

The momentum they'd built continued after the break and from the restart they had their opponents on the back foot. The pressure almost paid off immediately too when when Danny Dignan was felled in the area by the Durham keeper, only for the referee to book the Mossley player for diving despite keeper Craig Turns apparently, and rather nobly, informing the official that he had indeed caught him.

They didn't have to wait long though to pull a goal back and it came when Clive Moyo-Modise struck a low shot through a crowd of players from the edge of the box.

The effect the goal had on Durham was visible but Mossley were unable to capitalise on a steadily growing panic in the visitors back line. Although they were playing the better football, and spending a lot of time in and around the Durham area, they couldn't turn that possession into shots on goal.

City's ventures forward on the other hand, despite being fewer and further between, always looked dangerous and that they didn't add to their lead was down to some good defending and a couple of stunning saves from James Mann.

As the teams trooped off the heavy pitch after a fractious end to the the game, Mossley will have done so wondering about what might have been had it not been for that early lack of composure that ultimately cost them the game.

Report by SJNR

pics by Garry Hadfield