Smart Finish Enough To Blow Albion Through

This cup-tie as anywhere near a spectacle was destroyed at a very windy and sometime squally Turnbull Ground.

However the only goal was indeed a treat to savour for the hardy few travelling Wittoners along with their pitch heroes who, having departed two cup journeys over the previous week, got themselves back on a winning trail, recording the same result as the league match played in very different weather conditions two months prior.

That goal came in the 59th minute and was a credit firstly to Anthony Gardner, who threw the ball with precise trajectory onto the head of Will Jones, he in turn nodded on into a central position where Billy Smart superbly got between two defenders to convert for his second consecutive match.

Matty Devine got very close to celebrating his 100th appearance when, not for the first time getting into a prominent position, his fiercely struck shot was beaten away by home keeper Adam McHugh that would have sealed victory. Instead at the other end the crossbar came to Witton’s rescue following an attempt by Town substitute Greg Rutherford.

It was a different shaped Albion team that Carl Macauley decided on with Michael Wilson added to the defensive strength thus playing a 5-3-2 combination that allowed both Devine and Gardner to venture further upfield than norm.

Too often though the elements had a say in the final outcome for both sets of players with lots of left wing attempts ending wide of the far post and other attempts on goal well over the target.

Greg Hall produced a tremendous save by tipping over from Jassem Sukar before flicking the ball away as Whitby strived to equalize.

Town’s match sponsors chose Danny McKenna as Albion’s man of the match and nobody could argue with the decision as he was prominent throughout but his ten teammates, no substitutes introduced, all put in a truly workmanlike shift to see Witton through to Monday lunchtime’s draw.