Radcliffe Bruised By Leek

BY DANIEL PRYER

Radcliffe slump to their fourth defeat of the season after losing 2-1 away to 10-men Leek Town in a high-temper encounter.

Aaron Bott opened the scoring for the away side, as Dan Tricket-Smith added the second 18 minutes later.

Boro replied through Louis Myers early in the second-half, before Scott Lycett was sent off moments after.

Jon Macken’s side now slip to second place, with Atherton Collieries leapfrogging into top spot.

Both sides came into the match on the back of a great run of form, but it was the hosts who looked to carry on that feat, as Robert Stevenson found Aaron Bott at the far post to slide home inside 17 minutes.

Less than a minute later, there were appeals from the Boro bench when Tunde Owolabi looked to have been brought down inside the area by Marc Grocott, but the referee wasn’t interested.

Leek then doubled their lead on 35 minutes. A poor clearance from goalkeeper Ollie Martin found the feet of Dan Trickett-Smith, who then drove a 45-yard shot over the goalkeepers head and in, to certify their first-half dominance.

The away side came running out of the blocks, as substitute Elliot Rokka looked to make an instant impact with a free-kick in the first 30 seconds, but blazed his effort over the bar.

Radcliffe then pulled one back 10 minutes later. Owolabi’s great solo run eventually found Louis Myers running inside on the left to slot home a one-on-one chance.

The Blues then went down to 10-men on 67 minutes, as Scott Lycett received a second yellow card for kicking the ball away, after the whistle had gone for foul against Leek.

Boro continued with opportunities through Louis Myers and a last gasp header from Callum Grogan, which missed the right-hand post by a whisker.

Jon Macken’s side now face Mossley at the Neuven Stadium on Saturday, after losing their fourth in the league this season.

The Full Interview with Jon Macken is available on our YouTube Channel.