Newton Aycliffe 4, Penrith 1
By Bob Wood
Newton Aycliffe achieved their first double of the season with a 4-1 win against Penrith on Saturday.
Aycliffe took the points with a 3-1 win against the Cumbrians in the second game of the season and went one better when the sides met at Moore Lane.
Aycliffe started brightly and man-of-the-match Shaun Hudson opened the scoring after just five minutes.
However, the home team’s joy was short lived as Penrith went on the attack from the restart and within a minute had equalised when Tom Gavin headed into his own net.
The home side settled the better into the game and took the lead again on 31 minutes thanks to another own goal.
This time it was Penrith skipper Grant Davidson’s misfortune as he turned in a ball from Aycliffe’s latest signing Ryu Williamson. Ian Ward made it 3-1 to Aycliffe with two minutes to go before half time.
Aycliffe were quick out of the starting blocks for the second half scoring within four minutes of the restart. Tom Gavin atoned for his earlier mishap with a fine strike beating the Penrith keeper.
The score remained at 4-1 until the final whistle. Penrith finished the game with 10 men. Jordan Irving unfortunately suffered a broken ankle and with their one substitute already having been used the visitors had to play the last few minutes of the game a man short.
The three points take Aycliffe’s tally to 11 and 10th in the Ebac Northern League Division One.
Next up for the Newtonians is a trip to Dunston UTS tonight (Tuesday, September 25). Dunston are unbeaten in the league so far this season and are fresh from an excellent win in the FA Cup on Saturday.
There’s no game for Aycliffe on Saturday (September 29) so the next match is a trip to Newcastle Benfield on Saturday October 6. The next match at Moore Lane is against North Shields on Saturday October 13.
