Allott of talent bags victory for Athletic

STAR QUALITY: Failsworth’s Danny Allott holds off Crompton rival Chris Allerton.

Failsworth Athletic 3, Crompton House Old Boys 1

FOOTBALL: DANNY Allott produced a match-winning performance to help Failsworth Athletic to victory over fierce rivals Crompton House Old Boys in the Jack Abbott Premier Division of the Midas Plumbing and Heating Oldham Sunday League at the Oasis Academy.

Allott netted twice to maintain Athletic’s lofty position in the top flight, and also caused a few headaches in the Old Boys camp as relegation looms.

Athletic manager Mike Gibson, conceding that his side has only the faintest chance of winning the title, fielded a number of fringe players, with Jordan Wood and Curtis Shenton giving good accounts of themselves.

This was the fourth meeting of these two sides this season – twice in the league and twice in cup competitions – and the rivalry was obvious.

There is little to choose between the teams in terms of quality and competitiveness, which has been reflected in previous results.

But this time Athletic managed to win by two goals - deservedly so on another wet and windy afternoon.

Old Boys took the lead after 14 minutes. Scott Rowbottom took advantage of a mishap in the Athletic defence to steer the ball home.

Athletic pressed hard for a leveller, which came 10 minutes before the break when Allott’s 25-yard shot fizzed into the net.

It was Allott again five minutes after the restart, expertly lobbing the ball home from the edge of the penalty area.

It was time for Old Boys to search for an equaliser, but sharp-shooting hit-man Niall Sultan had other ideas.