Town lose out 2-1 to Fleetwood Town.
Fleetwood: Alex Cairns, Lewie Coyle, Ashley Eastham, Wes Burns, Paddy Madden, Ryan Taylor, Craig Morgan, Ashley Hunter, Ross Wallace (Kyle Dempsey, 89), Nathan Sheron, James Wallace (Chris Long, 42) (Jason Holt, 69).
Subs: Paul Jones, Jason Holt, Kyle Dempsey, Cian Bolger, Chris Long, Harrison Biggins, Ryan Rydel.
Town: Joel Coleman, Josh Emmanuel, Mat Sadler, Omar Beckles, Fejiri Okenabirhie (Greg Docherty, 45), Lenell John-Lewis (Aaron Amadi-Holloway, 45), Alex Gilliead, Luke Waterfall, Josh Laurent (Lee Angol, 90), Ollie Norburn.
Subs: Steve Arnold, Ryan Haynes, Greg Docherty, Lee Angol, James Bolton, Aaron Amadi-Holloway, Ryan Barnett.
Referee: Thomas Bramall
Assistants: Barry Gordon and Ken Haycock
Fourth official: B Smallwood
Attendance: 2983
Despite a second half goal, Town lost out 2-1 to Fleetwood Town. The home side took all three points after two first-half goals.
Josh Laurent was on the score sheet for Town, but Askey’s me couldn’t find the vital goal to nick a point.
Team News:
John Askey makes two changes to the starting line-up that faced Accrington Stanley last Saturday. Anthony Grant is unavailable due to injury and Lee Angol starts on the bench. Introduced into the starting 11 are Lenell John-Lewis and Fejiri Okenabirhie.
First Half:
Ollie Norburn was given a yellow card just moments into the game, as the midfielder brought down a Fleetwood player in the middle of the park.
The first 10 minutes of the half ended up more in the favour of the home side. The Cod Army had some good chances early on, but Joel Coleman was equally as good making important saves.
The home side capitalised on their early pressure and got in front just after the 19th minute. Ashley Hunter floated a lovely ball into the box, which was met by Paddy Madden. The striker glanced the ball towards the net, and the ball went in via the post.
The Cod Army doubled their lead shortly after securing the first. Madden went from goal scorer to provider in the 27th minute. The forward threaded a nice through ball into the box and Wes Burns took his first-time shot well, slotting the ball into the far corner.
As the half progressed towards the latter stages, goalmouth action had dried up. Town were still pushing to get a goal back, but the home side were doing well to limit any chances in their box.
Right on the stroke of half time Fejiri Okenabirhie came close to halving the deficit for Town. The forward slipped into the box, but narrowly missed the target from a tight angle.
The half came to an end with the home side up on the score sheet by two goals. A positive half from Joey Barton’s men limited any real chances for Town.
Second Half:
Town came out for the second-half looking determined to get a goal back. It only took Askey’s men 10 minutes for their perseverance to pay off. Shaun Whalley did well to beat his man and slip a driven ball into the box. Josh Laurent got on the end of the pass and slotted the ball into the corner of the goal.
Town were continuously looking to challenge the Fleetwood back line at any given chance. Greg Docherty and Alex Gilliead were both doing well to create sparks of play but Town couldn’t turn those spells into clear opportunities.
Luke Waterfall was given a yellow card in the 72nd minute for obstructing Ross Wallace.
Gilliead was being a constant pain down the left side of the pitch and was causing Fleetwood some problems with his fast dribbling. The winger did well to earn his side a corner with 10 minutes to go, but Barton’s men did well to clear the ball.
Holloway came inches away from levelling the score in stoppage time. The striker latched onto a cross and powerfully headed the ball towards goal, but Alex Cairns made a great acrobatic save to deny town an equaliser.
Despite Town’s best efforts, the game ended 2-1 with the home side on the right side of the score sheet. Despite Laurent’s second-half goal, Town were unable to find an equaliser.