Perfect start to the new year! - TRAFFORD 1 v 0 Lancaster City
Trafford made the perfect start to the New Year with a superb 1-0 victory over high flying Lancaster City at Shawe View on Saturday.
This was Trafford's first game since early December and they looked extremely rusty in the early stages as fourth placed Lancaster tore them apart with some eye-catching attacking football.
Visiting striker David Swarbrick screwed a shot wide in the second minute and then blasted high and wide from just inside the Trafford penalty area.
Home keeper Aaron Tyrer then produced two brilliant reflex saves to thwart Paul Jarvis and Adam Farrell and right back Keith Wedge cleared a glancing header by Josh Kenworthy off the goal-line following a right wing corner.
In the 13th minute Trafford mounted their first attack of any note with Joe Shaw blasting a drive from 30 yards that clipped the crossbar and flew over.
This incident appeared to give Trafford added confidence and belief and central midfielders Tunji Moses and Jamie Baguley began to take control of the game.
Shaw went close again when he flashed a drive just wide from outside the penalty area and then centre half Nia Bayunu squandered a great opportunity when he misdirected a header from just eight yards after a neat flick by Andy Lundy.
Lancaster's early confidence seemed to be evaporating as the home side seized the initiative and in the 27th minute Chris Baguley seized upon a weak back pass, rounded goalkeeper Martin Fearon but shot into the side-netting.
The deadlock was finally broken three minutes before half-time when Warren Collier intercepted a weak back header by Rob Henry and cooly slotted the ball past the advancing Fearon.
The second half was totally dominated by both defences and there was a dearth of goalmouth action.
Trafford centre back Steve Thompson was tremendously impressive and brought a calm reassurance to a defence that had looked completely disorganised at times in previous games. Thompson's defensive partner Nia Bayunu was magnificent, winning everything that was thrown at him and providing a great shield for goalkeeper Tyrer.
Lancaster were restricted to just two half chances during the second period, Swarbrick heading wide from ten yards and then firing over from the edge of the area in the closing stages.
At the other end Fearon was untroubled throughout the half and so a game that in the opening stages appeared to be heading for an emphatic away victory was finally settled by an opportunistic strike by Warren Collier that gave manager Garry Vaughan the perfect start to 2011 and ended a nightmare run of six consecutive defeats.
Trafford will be hoping to build on this victory on Saturday when they entertain league leaders Chester at Shawe View for a game that is certain to attract a bumper crowd and may well beat their attendance record of 803 against Flixton in 1997.
