Two goals in the final stages of the match consigned The Non-League Reds to another defeat, in a well contested game played in horrible conditions.
It's safe to say that if this game was played on grass, everyone concerned would have had the afternoon off, however the 3G pitch ensured that the game went ahead. The driving wind and rain made it very difficult to play any decent football and it was a credit to both sides, that they tried to keep possession as best they could and made a decent spectacle out of it. AFC played with the wind at their backs in the 1st half but struggled early on as a lot of passes went straight through to the opposition keeper. They did create half a chance in the opening couple of minutes though, as Elliot Taylor was narrowly beaten to the ball by Schofield in the Stockport goal. On 7 minutes, Schofield made a top-class save, tipping over a well struck effort from Tom Beckett.
Both sides then had a number of half chances without seriously threatening the goal. However, all that changed on the half-hour mark, when Edan Bavelock picked the ball up in the opponents half, ran towards goal and unleashed an unstoppable 25 yard shot into the bottom corner of the net. Stockport continued to try and build patiently from the back as Foulds and Turnbull regularly exchanged passes across the backline, but they failed to create many chances, as AFC were well organised at the back. In the last minute of the half, a corner was headed sharply towards goal by Town striker McLaughlin. As the home side's players turned away in celebration, Dave Parkinson flung himself to his left to make an outstanding save and maintain AFC's lead as the half ended.
Stockport won an early free-kick in the 2nd half, with the strike just going narrowly wide of Parkinson's left post. AFC's first chance of the half also came courtesy of a free-kick, which was struck well by Tom Beckett but straight down the throat of the keeper. As the half progressed, both keepers were forced to make saves you'd expect them to make and then on 75 minutes AFC suffered a blow, as Adam Sudworth went down injured and had to be replaced. Stockport began to push more players forward, as they threw caution to the very blustery wind and AFC began to sit deeper but it looked like AFC had done enough, as their hard work kept the home side at bay.
In the 89th minute a long ball found substitute George Omokua and it looked like he was in on goal. AFC got back well and it appeared they had dealt with the threat again, however, the clearance was picked up by Town and the ball found it's way back to the striker, who cut inside and rifled the ball home for the equaliser. That was harsh enough on AFC at that stage of the game but unfortunately, as the game moved into the 92nd minute, The Non-League Reds again let Omokua cut inside on his right foot, to score a carbon copy of his first goal and give the home side the lead. There just wasn't time for AFC to respond and as the final whistle went, the realisation sunk in that only a few minutes earlier, the visitors were going back with all 3 points but were now leaving empty handed. A cruel finish for AFC but credit to Stockport who kept going until the end and got their rewards.
The Non-League Reds have another tough game this coming weekend, as FC Isle of Man make the trip over to The Marine Travel Arena. Please note that there is an early kick-off time for this one, with the match staring at 12 noon. It's bound to be an exciting affair after last year's 4-4 draw in the corresponding fixture, so please get down early to support the lads.
FINAL SCORE: Stockport Town 2 v 1 AFC Liverpool
LINE-UP: 1. Parkinson 2. Cunningham 3. Giblin 4. Brown 5. Fisher-Jones (c) 6. Sudworth
7. Beckett 8. Mahaffy 9. Taylor 10. Skillen 11. Bavelock
Subs Used: Murphy, Moorcroft, Lancaster, Rooney, Wright-Ocana
(Pics courtesy of Billy Stirrup)
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