Clitheroe 3 Mossley 2
Att. 901
Clitheroe enjoyed their return to home comforts after long trips to Workington and to Leek, and in front of 900 fans, they took all three points with a confident display. That said, if Mossley’s recovery had started earlier, the visitors could well have shared the spoils.

With Chris Smalley back for a one game cameo, there was a solid feel to the Clitheroe side. Max Cane also started alongside Sefton Gonzales and his pace was a constant thorn in the side of the visitors. Clitheroe dominated proceedings for much of the first half and it was no surprise when Cane latched on to a long bouncing clearance from Chris Thompson and he expertly lifted the ball over the Mossley keeper after six minutes to give Clitheroe the lead.

Four minutes later, he engineered an excellent position on the right but could not get any real purchase on his shot as he shaped to shoot. He then doubled the lead with his second of the afternoon, as he stooped to get on the end of a right footed cross from Gonzales and headed beyond the keeper. Three minutes later, Richie Baker could have put the game beyond Mossley’s reach when Ben McKenna wove his magic on the wing and from the cross, Baker screamed a volley just over the bar. As half time approached, the visitors found more of their shape and the last action of the half saw them thump a header against the bar from an in swinging corner.

Whilst the second half was more even, Clitheroe were still in the ascendancy. On 71 minutes, Cane had the Mossley keeper in trouble as he beat away his shot. One minute later, from a corner Billy Priestley’s shot ballooned the net, but it was the side netting rather than another goal. Gonzales finally added to the tally with a great goal on 78 minutes as he tacked across the edge of the box and then unleashed a rasping drive, which gave the keeper no chance.

However, this signalled more sustained pressure from Mossley, and on 86 minutes, a scruffy shot from the left found its way into the net. Calm heads were called for, but on 93 minutes Mossley scored a second as Thompson was unsighted as a shot from distance went through a forest of legs into the net. There were four further minutes of extra time to navigate and every attack suddenly looked dangerous. There was still time for the visitors to whizz a shot across the face of the goal, but in the end, Clitheroe held on to take three points and to set themselves up for a 15 game tilt at the play off places.

Team : Chris Thompson, Jamie Edwards, Bailey Sloane, Richard Baker, Chris Smalley, Billy Priestley, Max Cane, Alex Turner (Louis Jeanne), Sefton Gonzales (c), Joel Byrom (Danny Wilkins), Ben McKenna (Cole Lonsdale). Subs - Danny Wilkins, Cole Lonsdale, Louis Jeanne. Not used - Matthew Hodds.