Atherton Collieries fell wide of the mark with a thrashing at the hands of Stafford Rangers on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Staffordshire.
The Black and Whites struggled to find a foothold from the off, and an enforced change in shape due to an injury to defender Toba Obitayo added further strain on the Collieries abilities to withstand the Boro’s trademark brand of direct and physical football.
Chances did come to the Colls in the first half, with Alex Doyle notably testing the high line of maverick goalkeeper Cam Belford with a long range effort that flew narrowly wide.
It may have been considered a relief to many Northern Premier League fans to see long throw specialist Tom Tonks depart Marston Road for a higher level two seasons ago, but credit must go to the Rangers for subsequently finding an identikit replacement in James O’Neill, whose efforts ensured the hallmark Stafford long throw remained a more than potent thorn in the Colls side all afternoon.
It was John Atherton who opened the scoring for the Boro, finding the net as the Colls failed to clear their lines following a textbook long throw routine. Seconds later, a second goal came as Daniel Cockerline outpaced and outmuscled the defense on the left flank to provide for Kaiman Anderson.
The Collieries found brief respite and had their chances to pull themselves back into the game before half time. Lewis Rawsthorn had the pick of the bunch, shooting wide from near the penalty spot following great work from Tom Warren, whilst Calen Gallagher also tested Cam Belford with a well taken header from an Ethan Kershaw cross.
Sadly, these opportunities to change the course of the afternoon were not taken, and Stafford turned the game into a rout, twisting the knife with a ruthless second half performance.
John Atherton converted his second of the afternoon following a poorly defended corner, before Stafford’s fourth came through nomadic targetman Dan Cockerline, who converted from a Cam Belford long ball following a brief flashpoint between the stopper and Kielen Adams.
The final goal of the game came through Kaiman Anderson again as Stanley Anaebonam broke down the flanks and provided for the forward’s second of the game.
At the final whistle, the players were applauded off by the vocal traveling faithful regardless, with attentions now quickly turning to Tuesday night’s clash with Widnes with manager Michael Clegg and the supporters expecting a quick response from the Black and White Stripes.
