Flint hit back in emphatic style following Good Friday’s heavy defeat, ending the Easter break on a positive note with this excellent win down in South Wales. Manager Neil Gibson will no doubt have been very happy how his team responded, after their mauling at TNS.
The visitor’s cause was helped with the sending off of the home side’s Ryan Reynolds on 20 minutes, as he was shown a straight red following a reckless challenge on Conor Harwood, when he went straight through the Flint man. The resulting free kick was cleared for a corner, and from that, Flint took the lead. A Jake Phillips delivery found the head of Ben Nash, who planted his header into the back of the net. From that moment, the Silkmen never looked back, and cruised to a comfortable victory.
Callum Bratley went close with a header on 28 minutes, putting it just wide of the post, before Mark Cadwallader doubled the advantage five minutes later. This time it was from a corner on the opposite side, which Sam Hart swung in. Cadwallader made sure he got first to the ball ahead of his covering defenders and glanced his header in, as he arced backwards to connect with the ball.
Flint’s fine first half got even better a minute before the break when they were awarded a penalty. Nash had drilled a shot goalwards, when an outstretched arm impeded the ball’s progress. Cadwallader stepped up to shoot low in the corner, the ball eluding Tye Williams in the Penybont goal, who had guessed the right way, but the accuracy of the shot had him beaten.
At half time, young Academy talent Harley Brindley-Peagram was introduced into the action for the Silkmen, and the 16 year old showed plenty of nice touches in the second half, and his forward runs proved a constant source of menace to the Bont defenders.
Meanwhile, Cadwallader was on the lookout for his hat-trick, and went close on 50 minutes, as he saw his header saved by Williams. A minute later he was on the ball again, but this time squared it across goal to Harwood, but Williams dived bravely at the striker’s feet to collect the ball in the nick of time.
The game then entered a bit of a scrappy period, and to their credit, Penybont started mounted some attacks of their own. Jon Rushton was called upon to pull off a good save as he blocked an effort with his legs, successfully closing down the space to his near post from a shot wide on the right of the 6 yard box.
On 72 minutes, Brindley-Peagram made a great surging run down the left, before centring a lovely ball into Harwood, but unfortunately he missed his kick right in front of goal and the ball ran harmlessly on, across the pitch. Brindley-Peagram then tried his luck with a curling effort from just outside the area, but the shot just cleared the bar.
In the closing minutes, more of our Academy youngsters entered the fray, as Liam Ellis, Sonny Ward, Jack Williams and Morgan Roberts all came onto the pitch to get a further taste of first team action.
Report by Nigel Sheen
Line Ups :
Penybont – T. Williams, D. Jefferies (W. Flay 46), K. Georgeievsky (N. Cox 46), L. Harling (c) (C. Rogers 42), B. Ahmun (J. Lewis 46), L. Florence, M. Greenwood, D. Williams, R. Reynolds, T. Tweedy, J. Carson. Unused Subs – A. Morris (GK), S. Snaith
Flint Town United – J. Rushton, J. Phillips, S. Hart, B. Maher (c), B. Nash, K. Edwards (M. Roberts 88), D. Roberts (S. Ward 88), R. Weaver (J. Williams 88), C. Harwood (L. Ellis 81), M. Cadwallader, C. Bratley (H. Brindley-Peagram 46). Unused Subs – N. Collings (GK), O. Nugent
Flint MOM – Mark Cadwallader (led the line effectively and grabbed a couple of goals)
