8.2.2025
Pitching In Northern Premier League West
Hanley Town
Hednesford Town
Harrison (7)
(0) 0
(1) 1
Attendance
MoTM
Current Form
Next Match
240
Joe Doyle-Charles
W L W W W D D W W W
Widnes (H) 15.2.25
And so it continues for the Pitmen... Another victory on the road this week for Gavin Hurren's side, who extend their unbeaten run to eight games this afternoon with victory over relegation-haunted Hanley Town at Potteries Park
Tuesday night's hard-fought win at Wythenshawe had maintained the Pitmen's upward trend in 2025, consolidating their fourth place in the Northern Premier League West table ahead of today's trip up to the north of the county. It had been a good news/bad news week on the injury front for Hurren, who could welcome back Joel Taylor for today's game but saw Jacob Gwilt ruled out after picking up a knock in midweek. Jake Jervis, Elliott Johnson, Dan Sparkes, Jack Rose, Rob Stevenson and Omar Holness were all still missing due to injury, although the first two players are expected to be fit in the next seven days, With all this in mind, the Hednesford manager made two changes to his side from the one that had started at Wythenshawe, as Taylor replaced Gwilt and Jack Bearne came back in ahead of Niall Watson
Hanley - looking doomed sitting twenty-first place in the table, a full nineteen points from safety - had lost their last six games in a row, falling to a 4-2 defeat at Atherton Collieries last weekend. Manager Scott Dundas had moved into the transfer market in midweek, snapping up young Burton Albion duo Josh Taroni and Kia Svarc ahead of today's game. Both players came straight into the side as two of three changes to the side that started at Atherton - Taroni replaced Jack Wakefield and Svarc came in ahead of Tom Wakefield, whilst Muhammed Jutta came in up front ahead of Joel Stair. Stair's brother Theo - a former Hednesford player back in the 20029-2010 season - captained the hosts
The large travelling crowd that dwarfed the home supporters by at least two to one was served up a lightning quick start from the men in grey, who were on the front foot from the kick-off with a corner kick from Dan Trickett-Smith played into the box in the very first minute that was headed away by Corey Muirhead
Sixty seconds later, skipper Dom McHale drove in from the right flank, leaving two Hanley players in his wake before drilling in a low shot that skipped just wide of Hanley goalkeeper Adam Whitehouse's left-hand post
Recent signing Ahkeem Rose was looking to add to his goals scoring debut on Tuesday night, making a powerful run straight through the handle defence in the fourth minute and forcing a corner kick. A quickly taken flag kick from Trickett-Smith was played into the feet of Taylor, who fed the ball back to the midfielder; his attempted shot from an angle flew into the side netting with Whitehouse covering his near post
The Pitmen finally got their noses in front through the giant figure of Ollie Harrison in the seventh minute as their early pressure paid dividends; a free-kick from Dan Trickett-Smith on the right flank was floated into the box and onto the head of the big man at the far post, with Harrison firmly heading past Adam Whitehouse from six yards out to register a long-overdue first Hednesford goal for the towering defender
Another corner kick straight off the training ground in the eleventh minute very nearly led to a second goal in quick succession for the visitors as Trickett-Smith played a short corner into the path of McHale, who brilliantly teased his way past two challenges and drove a low cross into the box that rose instinctively turned wide of goal at the near post
Bearne looked to be at his brilliant best after a couple of games out of the starting line-up recently, making a barnstorming run from deep in the thirteenth minute after a Hanley corner was cleared to the winger, who took the ball fully thirty yards into the opposition half before Joel Stair could get back and make the challenge
Three minutes later, Trickett-Smith repeated the feat of Tuesday night by hitting the crossbar direct from a set piece, swinging in a corner kick from the left that struck the top of the Hanley crossbar as it looked to dip over the head of Whitehouse
Hanley had rarely threatened in the game's opening quarter, coming up against a well-organised and solid Hednesford defence. Their one brief sight at goal came through Sean Cooke's corner kick on twenty minutes that was cleared as far as Josh Bowden, whose follow-up effort from twenty yards out drifted well, well wide of Tony Breeden's near post
Sloppy play at the back from Hanley on twenty-four minutes gifted Rose a great chance to double the Pitmen's advantage as a blind backpass from Svarc went straight to the advancing Rose, who looked to tuck the ball underneath the advancing Whitehouse but could only toe-poke his effort off the goalkeeper's trailing leg from twelve yards out. Trickett-Smith picked up the rebound and attempted a lob back over the head of the retreating goalkeeper, but could only chip his shot over the crossbar from fully twenty-five yards out
Rose had certainly picked up where he had left off on Tuesday night and had another good chance two minutes later to make it back-to-back strikes for his new club as more sloppy play from Hanley, this time through Theo Stair, saw Taylor intercept with ease and send Bearne away down the left - his pull-back found Rose on the edge of the penalty area, where the powerfully-built striker turned well but saw his shot deflected just over the crossbar by Bowden
Referee Mr Soneye had certainly been a little too accommodating to the visitors for the home fans' liking so far, handing the Pitmen a ridiculous free-kick inside the Hanley half on twenty-eight minutes after team-mates Doyle-Charles and Trickett-Smith had run into each other as they challenged for the ball
On the half-hour mark, a clash between McHale and Muirhead in front of the two benches saw the Hednesford playmaker left flat out on the floor and prompted both sets of players to engage in a bout of handbags whilst McHale received treatment. Whitehouse was the recipient of a yellow card from Mr Soneye after taking his protests too far for the official's liking
Jamie Morgan thought that he had broken his Hednesford duck three minutes later after he flicked Bearne's corner kick into the path of Trickett-Smith, who showed great composure at the back post to chip the ball back into the six-yard box, where Morgan had followed the ball in to dive in and head Rose's knock-down into the net from close range. However, the assistant on the far side pulled the full-back up for being in an offside position and the goal was disallowed
The hosts were forced into making their first change of the game on thirty-six minutes as former Alsagar Town man Bowden picked up a knock and was replaced by Jack Wakefield
Whitehouse had to be alert on thirty-seven minutes to make a timely stop at his near post, claiming Taylor's dangerous inswinging cross ahead of the incoming Rose and managing to hold onto the slippery ball as the striker looked to pick up any scraps
Bearne took advantage of an untimely slip from Henry Briscoe on forty-one minutes, latching onto Taylor's pass and running at Theo Stair before firing in a powerful effort from sixteen yards out that Whitehouse diverted behind for a corner with his right leg
Simeon Maye - not renowned for his goalscoring prowess in his distinguished career - failed to add to his meagre goal tally in the final minute of the first half as Trickett-Smith rolled a short corner into the path of the midfielder, whose first-time effort sailed high and wide of goal from the edge of the Hanley penalty area
It had been another controlled, organised and problem-free half for the Pitmen, who had defended well and caused problems on the break through the likes of Rose, Bearne and Trickett-Smith. You certainly felt that the visitors had another couple of gears to move up into if required in the second half
Kory Roberts looked to add to his two goals so far this season just two minutes after the restart, picking up Trickett Smith's outswinging corner from the right on the penalty spot and turning well, firing his low shot just wide of Whitehouse's right-hand post
Dundas picked up a yellow card from Mr Soneye on fifty-two minutes as he took his protests a little too far with the assistant on his side of the pitch after a foul on Taroni by Taylor
Another quick break from the Pitmen on fifty-six minutes saw Trickett-Smith and Maye link up well to send McHale away in behind the Hanley defence. However, the Magic Man had moved a little too quickly for the assistant's liking and he was flagged offside before he could get his shot away
This was to be McHale's final contribution to the afternoon as was brought off and replaced by Nathan Blissett shortly after the hour mark; this saw the Pitmen's captaincy handed the vastly experienced Doyle-Charles in the absence of McHale for the remainder of the game. At the same time, Hanley made their second change of the afternoon as Jutta was replaced by Tom Wakefield
Rose picked up a soft yellow card from Mr Soneye a minute later as the striker made his feelings known to the official about a free-kick given against him for a foul on Muirhead and was booked for dissent
On sixty-six minutes, Taroni marked his Hanley debut with an unwanted yellow card from Mr Soneye as he was cautioned for a totting up of fouls on Bearne throughout the afternoon
Two minutes later, Muirhead followed his new team-mate into the referee's notebook as the centre-back was shown a yellow card for also flooring Bearne in full flight as he drifted inside from the left flank
Breeden had enjoyed a quiet afternoon up to this point, but produced a wonderful double save to keep his side in front on sixty-nine minutes; firstly, he pushed a goalbound effort from Cooke away from goal with a superb one-handed save to his right, following this up with a parry at his near post to smother Tom Wakefield's follow-up effort from an angle
Watson made a swift return to the pitch on seventy-one minutes, with the former Southport striker coming on to play alongside target man Blissett as he replaced the hard-running Rose
The hosts were looking to press the Pitmen late on in search of an equaliser, having their best spell of the game at this point as they forced a succession of corner kicks and free-kicks in the Hednesford third of the pitch. Cooke whipped in a dangerous-looking free-kick on seventy-six minutes that had Hednesford hearts in mouths as it dropped to Tom Wakefield, only for a timely flag to go up against the substitute as he drifted into an offside position at the far post
Blissett used his powerful frame to good effect to take some pressure off his side and earn them a free kick twenty-five yards from goal on eighty-two minutes, drawing a foul out of Theo Stair as he backed into the Hanley skipper. Trickett-Smith assumed responsibility for the set-piece and fired in a well-struck effort that was straight into the body of ex-Stafford Rangers stopper Whitehouse
With seven minutes remaining, Zidan Sutherland was handed another chance to reintegrate himself back into the side after his recent loan spell out at Stafford, with the quick-footed striker coming on in place of Bearne
Trickett-Smith - another that has probably struggled to maintain his high performance levels of the festive period in the last few games - had done everything but score for the Pitmen this afternoon and went close to finishing Hanley off on eighty-six minutes as Watson's deep cross from the left was headed away by Briscoe but only as far as the Stoke-On-Trent native, who tried his luck with another audacious chip from the edge of the penalty area that Whitehouse claimed at his near post
The nerves were certainly jangling for the Pitmen as we headed into six added minutes, with Harrison spoiling an otherwise peerless performance with a cheap free-kick and yellow card in the first added minute as he brought down Jordan Hodkin just to the left of the Hednesford penalty area. Cooke floated a teasing ball over the two-man wall and into the six-yard box, but Breeden was equal to the ball and plucked it out of the air before falling to the floor in relief
Another step in the right direction for the Pitmen with a crucial three points that take full advantage of everyone above them dropping points. They now sit nine points off table toppers Widnes and only three behind second-placed Vauxhall Motors, with a mouth-watering home game against Widnes to come next weekend. A continuation of the Pitmen's recent winning form there and perhaps, just perhaps, there may well be the opportunity to mount a late title challenge
Hanley Town: Whitehouse ▆, Taroni ▆, Lawton, Muirhead ▆, T. Stair ©, Briscoe, Svarc ▆, Bowden (J. Wakefield 36), Jutta (T. Wakefield 61), Cooke, Hodkin Subs Unused: Bereton, Marcisz
Hednesford Town: Breeden, Morgan, Taylor, Maye, Harrison ▆, Roberts, Bearne (Sutherland 83), Doyle-Charles, Rose ▆(Watson 71), McHale © (Blissett 61), Trickett-Smith Sub Unused: Spence, Brown
