Following a disappointing draw at home to Pelaw Dogs the week before Sacriston looked to bounce back with a game at home to mid-table Houghton Chilton Lodge, on a pitch that in parts was almost as icey as the infamous ice man himself.
Unfortunately the home side got off to the worst possible start and were behind within minutes when Houghton took a short corner and curled an in swinging cross into the box, which was headed in by the opposition centre half.
Segga then started to get into gear and press the opposition more aggressively, whilst getting their passing game going across the park which resulted in a number of decent openings for the sunflower men.
It didn’t take long before Sacriston pulled level, following some good work down the right the ball found its way to Davey Winter who drove into the box, dribbled round a couple of defenders and pulled the ball back for Luke to finish passed the helpless keeper.
Sacriston were now starting to dominate the game and took the lead midway through the first half, when further good work from David resulted in a deep curling cross towards the far post and DJ Newby Johnson powered a header impressively into the back of the net from the tightest of angles.
By this stage gaffer Sanderson had already gotten on the wrong side of the referee and received his customary yellow card, aiding his personal goal of achieving ‘bad boy of the year’, an award Aaron White has certainly given up hope of now.
Shortly after picking up a card Ben picked up the ball deep in Sacriston’s half and played a beautiful long range pass in behind the opposition defence, which lightning Luke latched onto and dinked delightfully over the keeper for his second, and Sacriston’s third of the game.
Half time then approached with Sacriston in a similar position to the week before against Pelaw, thankfully this time Segga didn’t switch off during the second half and continued to play football.
Sacriston got their fourth goal 10 minutes in the second half when hard work paid off for Luke as he chased down the keeper and managed to nick the ball round him, resulting in his easiest finish of the day for his hat-trick. This capped an excellent performance from the wee fella, who celebrated his hat-trick by running over to the fans and lifting his shirt to show an ‘I Heart Lucy’ message on his vest; and with rumours rife of both a baby and an engagement on the horizon for the happy couple, I’d just like to say congrats on behalf of everyone at the club.
Sacriston then made a few changes to freshen things up and got a fifth with around 15 minutes left in the match, some good work down the left hand side between Dan and Adam led to a ball across the box falling to Tom on the edge and his volley was blocked heroically on the line to prevent a certain goal, but thankfully the rebounds fell to the most clinical Renwick brother in the squad, and John Arne Leesa rifled the ball home passed a jungle of legs and into the far corner of the goal for his third league goal of the campaign.
The Ginger Messi then replaced Luke upfront and Laddie looked destined to find the net with a couple of decent opportunities in the box, but much to his and the crowd’s disappointment, some good work from the opposition defence and keeper prevented the home debut goal for Sacriston’s new hero.
Sacriston defended impressively throughout the game and limited the opposition to any real chances from open play, but shortly from the end Houghton got their second goal of the match from another set-piece, with the opposition allowed a free header which the two Adam’s combined couldn’t quite keep out. I may mark it down as an Adam Wilson OG, as it seems unlikely the young pup will score in the right end this season, as he looks odds on favourite for the ‘Chalky’ award at the end of season presentation.
All in all a good win for Segga who remain unbeaten in the Shaun Forster era and are still fighting towards the top end of the league, though any chance of winning it seems increasingly unlikely as the weeks go by.
On a separate note the club are seeking further information relating to an incident that occurred post-match in the dressing room; a disgusting act from one individual resulted in the general’s lovely, stylish coat being left to rot on the floor like a ‘worthless rag’, any witnesses would be greatly appreciated (I think it was Lee Renwick).
