Perfect ten out of ten for Moors

The champions of the last three seasons maintained their 100 per cent record with their tenth league win, but only their second half performance lived up to the billing – it was more of a 7 out of 10 performance.

Consett had the edge on chances in the first half, and their centre forward Michael Mackay twice fired just over the bar, while Moors had a shout for a penalty turned down at the other end.

But Moors came to life in the second half, when Steve Richardson fired into the top corner from the edge of the box. After that, Consett keeper Chris Elliott made good saves from Gavin Cogdon and Micky Laws , but he had no chance on 68 minutes when sub Mark Davison won possession, ran into the box, and slotted the ball home. It was 3-0 with a minute left when Anthony Peacock drove the ball into the top corner, and in stoppage time Moors conceded only their second league goal of the season when Mackay stabbed the ball past Moors keeper David Knight.

Moors boss Jason Ainsley said: “We never got out of the dressing room in the first half, and Consett were always a threat. Not one player could say that they were good enough in the first half. I must admit that at half time I would have taken a 1-0 win.

“We were totally the opposite from the first half after half time. All the players worked hard, and the roles were reversed, and we deserved the points in the end.”

Moors remain six points behind leaders Darlington.

Consett manager Kenny Lindoe said: “I thought we slightly edged it in the first half, but we were second best after half time. The opening goal knocked our ends in.”

Darlington stayed six points clear at the top after thumping Billingham Town 7-1. There’s a match report by Craig Stoddart on the Darlington FC section of the Echo website.

Darlington manager Martin Gray said: “I thought Steve Thompson was magnificent again, he was at the heart of everything.”

Billingham Town manager Carl Jarrett said: “I was disappointed in our second half performance. I thought we gave them too much space and time to play around us. I will be looking for a reaction against Benfield next week.”

Bedlington are hard on the heels of the top two by winning 2-1 at Guisborough. Paul Brayson scored his 12th league goal of the season from close range after 20 minutes, and then Adam Wilkinson scored the second from a corner.

Guisborough battled back and Austin Johnston scored from a pass by Adam Gell before half time, but despite having most of the game in the second half, couldn’t find the equaliser.

Guisborough manager Chris Hardy said: “This game saw little or nothing between the two sides and for the game to have finished in a draw neither side could not have had any complaints. The disappointing thing for myself was the nature of the goals we conceded, both with ourselves being in possession. That being said this was a very good effort from my team .”

Bishop Auckland are up to fourth, but a 4-0 victory over Norton at Heritage Park came at a costly price, as striker Sonny Andrews could be out for several months with a bad knee injury.

They took the lead when Andrew Johnson tapped in from a Jamie Harwood header, then Harwood crossed for Andrews to score with a low shot.

Andrews was stretchered off midway through the second half, then Norton had Dale Mulligan dismissed for two yellow cards. Kieran Megran made it 3-0 after a Johnson rebounded off a defender to him, then Dan Hawkins scored the fourth from a Johnson free kick.

Bishop Auckland manager Colin Myers said: “It doesn’t look good for Sonny, he could be out for several months. It was a freak injury. It’s a massive blow.”

Norton manager Andy Campbell said: “It was a very disappointing result. We had enough chances to make a game of it but we’re poor in front of goal and at the same time gifted them some easy goals. As a manager I will battle on.”

Dunston produced a much better performance to beat South Shields 4-0 at the UTS stadium, although they scored all their goals in the second half. They took the lead when Dale Burrell dribbled past a couple of defenders and set up Lewis Teasdale for an easy tap in, then Danny Craggs scored with a cross-cum-shot for the second. Ian Herron then burst past three defenders and slotted the ball in, and Terry Galbraith dribbled through and scored the fourth. It was Dunston’s first clean sheet in the league this season.

Dunston manager Billy Irwin said: “We got our passing together in the second half, and the most pleasing thing was that we kept a clean sheet.”

Marske’s new manager, Ted Watts, won his first game in charge when his team beat Celtic nation 2-1 at Mount Pleasant.

Marske produced an excellent first 45 minutes, and took the lead with a shot from the edge of the box by James Magowan and midway through the second half David Onions scored from a rebound. After Karl Charlton had a third goal disallowed, David Lynn scored for Celtic Nation, who have now dropped into the bottom seven.

Marske manager Ted Watts said: “I enjoyed my first game. The lads played really well and did everything I asked of them, so I’m really pleased.”

Celtic Nation manager Steve Skinner said: “It was a one-sided game to us, but we are saying that too many times, but hopefully our luck will change.”

Whitley Bay are unbeaten in their last five league and cup games following a 2-0 away win at Shildon’s Dean Street.

Whitley have steadily improved in recent weeks, and they took the lead with a powerful shot by Lee Kerr on 63 minutes, then in the closing minutes Paul Chow scored from the spot after he was brought down by keeper Keith Finch, who was red carded. Shildon, however, complained that the offence took place outside the area. It was the first time this season that Shildon had failed to score in a league game.

Shildon manager Gary Forrest said “I thought we were poor and didn’t have enough energy. We laboured without a couple of our key players.”

Whitley Bay manager Ian Chandler said: “It was a comfortable win, I was surprised by how little Shildon troubled us. Kyle Hayes had nothing to save, we were good and deserved the win.”

Durham City, who could appoint a new manager in the next few days, pulled off a surprise result when they drew 3-3 at West Auckland.

Durham , under the temporary control of James Winter and Dan Madden, took the lead when Connor Winter beat the offside trap and fired past Mark Bell in the West goal, but John Campbell levelled with a good finish from 15 yards. Campbell crossed for Mark Stephenson to put West in the lead , but just before half time, Scott Fenwick levelled from 20 yards for Durham.

Durham kept battling away and went 3-2 up when Craig Ellison fired into the top corner, but West recovered and Campbell grabbed a point for them from the spot after Craig Hubbard’s effort was handled.

West Auckland manager Peter Dixon said: “We were terrible. Durham were a credit to themselves and gave us a good game. I can’t believe it was the same West team that fought so hard at Harrogate in midweek.”

Sunderland RCA threw away a three goal lead at Hebburn, and ended up drawing 3-3, which means they drop to fifth. Adam McGuinness scored at the second attempt to give RCA the lead after 15 minutes, then Gavin Barton made it 2-0 from a long ball. It seemed all over when Dave Gordon scored after a shot by Aristote Guerin-Lokonga was saved.

But Hebburn bounced back in the last 20 minutes and Mark Rasmussen pulled a goal back from a Johnny Davis pass. Liam McBryde pulled another back from close range, and in the last minute Scott Robson tapped in after McBryde’s shot was saved.

Sunderland RCA manager Neil Hixon said: “We’ve got massive problems in defence, we need some replacements as soon as possible.”

Hebburn manager Paul Bennett said: “Probably the worst game of football I’ve been involved in this season. We were 3-0 down because of three errors, and apart from that RCA didn’t have a shot. Then a few tweaks with 20 minutes to go and we slipped into gear. We keep building and growing as a team.”

Billingham Synthonia scored twice in the dying minutes to salvage a point in a 2-2 draw at Team Northumbria.

Former Darlington full back Dan Riley scored from an acute angle to give TN the lead after 21 minutes , and he broke through and scored the second after ten minutes of the second half.

But Synners pulled a goal back when Dan McWilliams crossed for Andy Jennings to head home, and in stoppage time youngster Aidan Cattermole scored from a cross by Matty Crossen.

Team Northumbria manager Paul Johnson said: “We dominated the game for 80 minutes but following an injury to one of our subs we went down to 10 men and having already used all our subs, we had to see out the last 20 minutes a man down. We should have seen the game out, but got sloppy in our defending.”

Bishop Auckland manager Colin Myers said: “It doesn’t look good for Sonny, he could be out for several months. It was a freak injury. It’s a massive blow.”

Newton Aycliffe are still bottom after they were beaten 3-1 at Ashington, but they were level 1-1 at one stage.

Andrew Johnson set up Marc Walton to score his 11th league goal of the season for Ashington, but Aycliffe levelled when Danny Lambert beat two players and crossed for Martin Young to score.

But the Aycliffe defence failed to deal with a long clearance, and Johnson took advantage to restore Ashington’s lead just on half time. James Taylor made it 3-1 with a good shot from ten yards.

Aycliffe coach Andy Toman has left the club after a month in the job.

Ashington assistant manager Anthony Woodhouse said: “We started the first half well and took the lead. We then conceded sloppy goals and looked second best and played poorly. We played a lot better in the second half and a well taken goal by James Taylor put them to bed.”

Newton Aycliffe manager Allan Oliver said: “We played really well in the first half, but never came out for the second. The second goal killed us.”

Newcastle Benfield threw away a 2-0 lead, and lost 3-2 at home to Penrith. Stephen Young scored twice to give Benfield a 2-0 lead after 38 minutes, but Penrith hit back with a goal just on half time through Stephen Rigg. Scott Allison levelled midway through the second half, and right at the end, he fired the winner.

Newcastle Benfield manager Perry Briggs said: “We were cruising at 2-0, but we got bullied in the second half. It’s time for me to make some big decisions because some players aren’t doing it for me.”

Second division leaders Ryhope CW hit the goals trail again, beating Thornaby 5-1, to give them 28 goals in their last five matches.

Richard Jordan, Nathan Johnson and Chris Winn, who is now the joint highest scorer in the division, had them 3-0 up by the half hour mark, although Chris Howard pulled a goal back for Thornaby.

But in the second half, Richard Playforth added two more for the Wearside League champions.

Ryhope’s overall goal tally is double than all of the clubs below them except two.

Ryhope Cw manager Martin Swales said: “At times Thornaby were the better side in the first half, but we took our goals well.”

Thornaby manager Neil Radigan said: “It was a flattering score to them . We played well in the first half with numerous chances but didn’t take them. In the second half we again started well but conceded four sloppy goals, But there were a lot of positives from the game. Their centre forward is too good for this division.”

Second placed Northallerton didn’t find it as easy against Whickham, but they still won 1-0 to remain five points behind with a game in hand. Adam Emson scored his 11th league goal of the season midway through the second half.

Northallerton manager Mark Fanning said: “We are still struggling to hit top form but we are looking solid and keep picking up three points. Long may it continue.”

Darlington RA lost ground in third, losing 3-0 at North Shields. Bobby Nolan gave Shields the lead from a few yards just after the 30 minute mark, then he scored his second midway through the second half with a good shot. He completed his hat trick when his shot went through the keeper’s legs.

Darlington RA manager Nick Harrison said: “We had to be somewhere near our best, and second half we weren’t. We gave away some soft goals but passed the ball poorly at times which meant we couldn’t sustain any attacks or create much. North Shields will take some beating this year.”

Jarrow Roofing are now in sixth after they beat fellow promotion challengers Whitehaven 3-2 . Roofing led 3-0 at one point with goals by Kris Goss, Dan Smart and Darren Reay, but Matty Tymon led a late revival for Whitehaven, scoring twice.

Jarrow Roofing manager Richie McLoughlin said: “In the first half we were all over them, winning 3-0. Then we took our foot off the pedal and they got two, but we held on to win.”

Ryton stunned Tow Law by winning 4-1 at Ironworks Road, to give them their second league win of the week. Paul Blakey, Liam Barker, Paul King and Marc Nicholson scored from Ryton, with Jonathan Kemp replying.

Tow Law manager Gary Anderson said: “It was an embarrassing performance, total credit to Ryton!”

Morpeth still have the only unbeaten record in the division, after beating Chester-le-Street 4-2 at Craik Park, with the help of two second half penalties. Micky Chilton gave Morpeth an early lead, but Chester hit back with goals by Michael Hepplewhite and Lewis Lynch. Jordan Fry levelled for Morpeth, who then scored twice in the second half with Chilton penalties. Chester had keeper Matthew Crook sent off for a foul for the first of them.

Chester-le-Street manager Colin Wake said: “It was a disappointing result again but a true reflection of the second half which they won by two penalties to nil. The first one was a great dive in the box with no-one near the full back changed the game. Then I had my keeper sent off for denying a goalscoring opportunity after Chilton had already shot at goal and the ball went wide. Penalty yes, red card no, but as always the officials wouldn’t speak to me or explain the decisions.”

Former Darlington player Richard Hodgson was Crook’s matchwinner against Horden. The home side took a half time lead through Peter Crawford, but Hodgson won the game for Crook, equalising with a penalty and then firing the winner to put his side into 7th..

Crook striker Kevin Devine has joined Team Northumbria.

Crook manager Gary Pearson said: “It was a very poor first half performance even though we had four decent chances, we still went one down from our corner. After the half time hairdryer we got a great reaction and much better performance. Three wins and a draw from our last four games, time to kick on.”

Horden manager Peter Mulcaster said: “It was a much better performance today. In fact I’m disappointed we didn’t get a point.”

Two late goals helped Brandon to a 2-1 home win over Stokesley, Ben Bonner gave Stokesley the lead, which they held until the 86th minute when Ged Wraith equalised, and then two minutes later Andrew Blackburn scored the equaliser.

Stokesley assistant manager Chris Lax said: “In a poor game both teams struggled to create chances. When we went in 1-0 up , we failed to do the basics and lost the game due to not being switched on at setpieces again.”

Birtley won their second successive game, winning 1-0 at Alnwick, thanks to a goal by Luke Wilson. Alnwick are now five points away from safety.

Birtley manager Scott Oliver said: “It’s never easy at Alnwick. We had to work hard to break them down. Hitting the woodwork four times made it a nervy last 20 minutes.”

Seaham Red Star are now eighth after beating Esh Winning 2-1. Dan Olusoga and Paul Kane put them 2-0 up, before Chris Smith pulled a goal back.

Esh have failed to win any of their last four league games.

Esh Winning manager Andrew Soppitt said: “We played very well, bossed the game but just didn't have that cutting edge to score from our chances.”

Seaham manager Mark Collingwood said: “Possession wise were second best, however, possession doesn’t win you games and we converted two of the three chances we created.”

Washington stunned West Allotment by winning 2-1 at Blue Flame. Martin Roper put Washington into the lead , but David Dormand levelled for Allotment. Dan Young scored the winner for Washington in the second half.

Washington manager Richie Latimer said: “It was a great win for us. In the first half we played really well and could have been out of sight second half. Allotment came out and had most of the play but we dug in and got the points.”

West Allotment manager Paul Stoneman said: “I’m absolutely gutted. I feel as if I’ve been let down by my players.”

Whitby are out of the FA Cup after they lost their third qualifying round tie 3-1 at Conference club Stalybridge Celtic.

However, they started the game well when Tom Portas scored from a David McTiernan pass, but Stalybridge levelled through Jamie Mullen. Jordan Barrow made it 2-1 before half time, with Greg Wilkinson scoring the third midway through the second half.