Boxing Day Misery

Vauxhall dominated the opening quarter of an hour and looked very comfortable on the ball and kept Burscough in their own half. Vauxhall created a couple of chances in that time, Hugh Macauley's well-struck free kick hit the upright. Terry Fearns had an excellent chance not long after to open the scoring but failed to do so as he rounded the keeper and saw his shot cleared before it had reached the goal.

Eight minutes later against the run of play Burscough did exactly what The Motormen couldn't, score. A great goal that should win goal of the season in all leagues. Marvin Molyneax controlled a quick free kick on the right touchline, after a great first touch he struck a 40 yard shot that went straight into the roof of the net to give the home side a 1-0 lead.

Ten minutes before the interval Motors' Carl Spellman became the first player to be red carded this season. The last player to see red was Peter Cumiskey over 20 months ago. Burscough already had the lead an also an extra player on the pitch that meant hard work lied ahead if Vauxhall were to get anything out of the game.

A couple of minutes before the interval former Burscough captain Carl Macauley made a goal-line clearance, as he hit the ball away it fell into the path of Connell who executed a great volley that put the home side in the driving seat and Motors' an uphill battle.

Half Time: Burscough 1-0 Vauxhall Motors

Burscough struck again and killed of the match as Mike White fired a header into the back of the net following a good corner.

Vauxhall were then rewarded with a free kick when long serving Carl Nesbitt picked out Terry Fearns whose neat dribbling took him through the Burscough defence as he then slotted the ball into the bottom corner. This was Fearns' first league goal since Owen Brown's first match against Droylsden back on November 4th.

Vauxhall were already beaten by this point and another defeat for The Motormen saw them languishing near to the relegation zone. Boss Owen Brown shared his thoughts with the Pioneer after the match by saying 'I'm very, very disappointed. We started well and looked comfortable for the first 20 minutes, but Burscough scored a goal totally out of the blue and it went downhill from there onwards. We still keep shooting ourselves in the foot. I don't think I've ever been so annoyed in a dressing room as I was today.'

The players were made to wait in the dressing room for half an hour after the game. That just shows what the gaffer thought of his sides performance.

Full Time: Burscough 3-1 Vauxhall Motors

Man of the Match: Terry Fearns for a good performance and goal. Could of had a couple but for good defending by Burscough.

Teams:

Motors: Kinsella, Spellman, Macauley, Robinson, McAuley (Ward 42), Lynch (McCann 75), Nesbitt, Lawton, Fearns, Whelan, Cumiskey (Rey).