The Colls Under 18s thirteen-game unbeaten streak came to an end following a 3-2 defeat at Ramsbottom United.
The clash between two of the North West Youth Alliances’ title hopefuls lived up to its pre-match billing and was a thrilling, end-to-end affair throughout.
The hosts drew first blood in the opening minutes of the game and were quick to twist the knife, racing to a 3-0 lead as the Collieries were uncharacteristically slow out of the blocks, with former Stripe Sam Meighan notching a deserved goal.
However, the Black & Whites quickly recovered, and were frustrated not to score multiple goals of their own before the interval. Ample credit is due to an incredible performance from the Rams goalkeeper and captain, who produced a string of top drawer saves to deny Liam Sheppard from close range, alongside great command of his defence and penalty area. Harry Brown was also unfortunate not to score from a corner.
The Colls raced out after the break to pin the pressure onto the Rams, with Liam Sheppard spearheading the fightback with an early goal, created through a Harry Brisco throw-in.
A further key chance came for Harry Stephens from a corner, with Bobby Fenlon also testing the goal from distance, but the second Collieries goal didn’t come until the dying embers, with Luis Monteiro’s conversion of a deep Stephens cross ultimately proving too little too late.
On Saturday, Ben Layton made his debut for Euxton Villa, who are amongst the promotion chasing pack in the NWCFL First Division North, whilst Harry Stephens’ Pennington won against University of Manchester in the Manchester League.
The Young Stripes return to action with a league trip to Congleton Town on January 5th, and retain their aspirations across five fronts going into the New Year.
