A game that could of easily gone either way. Fantastic efforts from both sides with end to end entertainment but we fall short with a second half goal from the visitors seeing them to take all 3 points.

We had a good respectful talk with the opposition chairman and coaches before the game who highly congratulated our current form and knew they would be in for a tough game. It was good to hear that our hard work since taking over is being recognised by others!

The game started 100mph with both sides having very early chances. Clay Cross had spells of possession and put us under pressure which we expected but a huge credit to our lads who dealt with this brilliantly all over the field. We also found ourselves putting the away side under pressure and having a few great chances in front of goal but not being able to finish them off.

The first half was extremely entertaining with chances, good football being played by both side and a few old school tackles flying in to add to the intensity of the half. We went into half time I believe on the upper hand having the better chances causing the away side frustration knowing that this will not be easy for them today.

Half time team talk was simple… if we keep a clean sheet we win this game as a chance will fall to us that will go in the back of the net. Unfortunately though as we know today just wasn’t meant to be.

The half time break done the away side a favour as it gave them chance to re group and come out at us which they did. They showed some very good spells of football with good individual performances. If we don’t take our chances against teams like this we will be punished and that we was. With the open play game being so tight clay cross found a way into our net with a great whipped delivery finding the head of a clay cross player.

From there our lads really battled and showed real grit and determination to find an equaliser. Then a quick counter attack from us and a cross in from the left hand side into the clay cross box saw us get on the end of it which saw the ball bounce yards over the line but the linesman and referee said NO GOAL! A shocking decision with their centre half’s admitting the ball went over the line but not being given by the officials which completely changed the games outcome.

From there both sides continued to go at it with the away side having some great chances to finish us off but we dug deep to prevent those chances finding the back of our net. Late on clay cross hit a wonderful 30 yard strike that saw our keeper fumble the ball and scoop it out then to pull off a worldie save from the follow up of their striker 2 yards out. Just like our previous opportunity that went over the line we humbly admit this looked over the line but again the linesman and referee said NO GOAL!

I never like blaming referees or match officials for results but today there were too many poor decisions from them that really impacted the game which was upsetting and frustrating for both sides you could say.

Then to top it off in the dying seconds we find ourselves on the counter attack in a really good threatening area with players forward and the referee blows the whistle which was mind blowing considering the position we was in.

In the end though a fantastic game of football and we were extremely proud of our lads who put up a real good performance against arguably in our opinion the best side in the league. We praised every single one of our lads after the game it’s never easy or nice to lose but losing in the way we did with the way we performed softened the blow today.

Shoutouts today go to every single Dunkirk player. I honestly couldn’t pick any individual today for man of the match because every single one of our lads were brilliant and it really showed what a long way we have come together as a team with the football we are playing, the intensity we give and the fitness levels that are there week in week out. The only thing stopping us at the moment is ourselves by not finishing chances which is crucial in football and especially games like today. We will continue to work hard on that and other things in training. We go into next weeks fixture full of confidence.

Up The Boatmen!