Gameweek 25 Review: Darwen FC VS Maghull
Mon 13th January 2025 | Match Reviews | By Jay Cooper
The Lone Survivor.
From a weekend of wet, snowy, frosty weather, and from a weekend initially scheduled to play host to 28 matches featuring NWCFL sides in various competitions, only one made it to kick off.
All the credit in the world to Darwen FC and their ground staff for helping to make sure that this game was able to take place. Maghull would be the visitors to the Anchor Ground. Let’s take a look at what went down.
Visiting Maghull got off to the better start, with Darren Brannigan trying his luck from range but firing well wide. It wouldn’t take long for the strikes to be a bit more troubling for the hosts, as Maghull won a penalty on seven minutes. Harrison Worden stepped up to the challenge and fired the ball beyond James Aspinall to give Joe Burns’ side the lead.
Things quietened down after the early goal, but reignited after 26 minutes when Maghull’s Nathan Moffatt got in behind the Darwen defence and poked the ball just behind the goal in an effort to double his team’s lead.
Despite Darwen’s continued dominance of possession, Maghull again went close with Adam Hammill curling just past the upright from the edge of the box. Darwen went right up the other end not long after and were able to put the ball beyond Ethan Carry, but the assistant referee had the offside flag raised.
That moment of worry seemed to light a fire under Maghull, and they weren’t ready to let their slender lead slip. Nathan Moffatt got onto the end of a well-worked routine down the left wing, and stabbed home from close range to double their advantage.
Darwen came out into the second half with renewed vigour. Whatever Leighton Mills said to his team at half time seemed to work very well in the early stages of the second period. That was especially true for forward Jayden Major, who drifted inside from the left flank and fired a strike into the roof of the net. The Salmoners were back in the game.
The substitutions began after the hour mark, and Darwen kept knocking on the door. Connor Hughes stung the palms of Carry just after, and that was followed up by goalscorer Major again forcing Carry off his feet to push a strike over the bar.
Things calmed down again with 20 minutes left to play, but the next goal would be crucial, and it would eventually fall the way of the visitors. A free kick from set-piece maestro Worden was rattled off the post but followed up quicky by Brannigan with a header. At 1-3 with 10 to go, it looked like game over.
Darwen had one more bite at the charry in the final stages of the match, as substitute and new signing Jefferson Golcalves De Abreu fired a low strike at Carry. It was a routine save, but one he had to make all the same to preserve Maghull’s two-goal lead.
With that, three points were sealed. Maghull have leapfrogged Ashton Town to 12th in the league table as a result of their victory. Darwen’s play-off push has been slightly dented by this result, but with no other teams around them having played or picked up points, they remain 8th.
After the match, victorious manager Joe Burns said that “it was a really tough game against a very good side who were bang in form, and the conditions were tough. I asked the lads to execute our game plan and every one of them had done it to perfection.
“It was a very disciplined performance, which was required for us to pick anything up from the game. In the end, I thought we totally deserved the three points after what was one of the most pleasing performances of the season, for me.”
Gameweek 25 Review: Darwen FC VS Maghull
Mon 13th January 2025 | Match Reviews
By Jay Cooper
The Lone Survivor.
From a weekend of wet, snowy, frosty weather, and from a weekend initially scheduled to play host to 28 matches featuring NWCFL sides in various competitions, only one made it to kick off.
All the credit in the world to Darwen FC and their ground staff for helping to make sure that this game was able to take place. Maghull would be the visitors to the Anchor Ground. Let’s take a look at what went down.
Visiting Maghull got off to the better start, with Darren Brannigan trying his luck from range but firing well wide. It wouldn’t take long for the strikes to be a bit more troubling for the hosts, as Maghull won a penalty on seven minutes. Harrison Worden stepped up to the challenge and fired the ball beyond James Aspinall to give Joe Burns’ side the lead.
Things quietened down after the early goal, but reignited after 26 minutes when Maghull’s Nathan Moffatt got in behind the Darwen defence and poked the ball just behind the goal in an effort to double his team’s lead.
Despite Darwen’s continued dominance of possession, Maghull again went close with Adam Hammill curling just past the upright from the edge of the box. Darwen went right up the other end not long after and were able to put the ball beyond Ethan Carry, but the assistant referee had the offside flag raised.
That moment of worry seemed to light a fire under Maghull, and they weren’t ready to let their slender lead slip. Nathan Moffatt got onto the end of a well-worked routine down the left wing, and stabbed home from close range to double their advantage.
Darwen came out into the second half with renewed vigour. Whatever Leighton Mills said to his team at half time seemed to work very well in the early stages of the second period. That was especially true for forward Jayden Major, who drifted inside from the left flank and fired a strike into the roof of the net. The Salmoners were back in the game.
The substitutions began after the hour mark, and Darwen kept knocking on the door. Connor Hughes stung the palms of Carry just after, and that was followed up by goalscorer Major again forcing Carry off his feet to push a strike over the bar.
Things calmed down again with 20 minutes left to play, but the next goal would be crucial, and it would eventually fall the way of the visitors. A free kick from set-piece maestro Worden was rattled off the post but followed up quicky by Brannigan with a header. At 1-3 with 10 to go, it looked like game over.
Darwen had one more bite at the charry in the final stages of the match, as substitute and new signing Jefferson Golcalves De Abreu fired a low strike at Carry. It was a routine save, but one he had to make all the same to preserve Maghull’s two-goal lead.
With that, three points were sealed. Maghull have leapfrogged Ashton Town to 12th in the league table as a result of their victory. Darwen’s play-off push has been slightly dented by this result, but with no other teams around them having played or picked up points, they remain 8th.
After the match, victorious manager Joe Burns said that “it was a really tough game against a very good side who were bang in form, and the conditions were tough. I asked the lads to execute our game plan and every one of them had done it to perfection.
“It was a very disciplined performance, which was required for us to pick anything up from the game. In the end, I thought we totally deserved the three points after what was one of the most pleasing performances of the season, for me.”
