Unbeaten in three, winners in the last two – Dronfield Town having been rock bottom just three weeks ago climbed to the lofty heights of sixteenth in the Northern Counties East League Division One with another thoroughly deserved 2-1 win away at Nostell MW. A Sam Terry double saw Dronfield to maximum points with another hard-working display against their higher-ranked opponents. The big games continue to come thick and fast as Town now look ahead to a home encounter with Shirebrook Town, the side they surpassed in the table by virtue of the Nostell victory.
Dronfield came flying out of the traps despite a somewhat heavy pitch; Sam Bebbington heading into the side netting from Sam Terry’s long throw on the right after just two minutes of play.
Three minutes later, Tom Gladwin put in an excellent left wing cross, Callum Mawbey’s glancing header just evading the far post as Town took the game to their opponents.
Nostell keeper Christopher Barrow pulled off a close range save from Mawbey on the quarter of an hour mark with Terry’s follow up effort being deflected out for a corner before the home side’s first goal attempt on eighteen minutes – Lewis Naylor saving comfortably from Danny Edwards’ shot on the edge of the area.
A ten minute spell from the home side put Dronfield under increased pressure. Sam Ford wriggled through the Town defence to see his close range effort tipped round the post by Naylor and on the half hour mark, Nathan Perks curving right wing cross was tipped over the bar by the Dronfield stopper.
Town finished the half the stronger however. Two Owen Lester efforts signalled a Dronfield resurgence and one minute into added time, the Derbyshire side broke the deadlock.
Charlie Stewart’s throw from the left hand side was headed on by Callum Mawbey, finding Sam Terry ghosting in to fire home from six yards out.
Nostell introduced top scorer Anees Younis for the second half and the impetus he provided saw the West Yorkshire men draw level on fifty minutes. Nathan Hawkhead was allowed space at the top of the area to place a shot into the bottom corner as time appeared to stand still in the Dronfield rearguard.
Resilience has been a byword for Dronfield during their recent revival and with Nostell pressing, Town’s Aran Bovill pulled off a super challenge on the lively Nathan Perks as he fired wide from eight yards out.
On seventy minutes, Dronfield restored their lead. A probing ball forward by Gladwin found Mawbey, who managed to round Barrow in the Nostell goal. His right footed shot was goalbound but eventually cleared only as far as Terry, who turned and slotted home to make it 2-1 to the visitors.
Further Dronfield pressure saw Regan Rooke hit a rising shot into the hands of Barrow on seventy four minutes and despite Nostell substitute Alfie Procter hitting the base of the post after cutting in from the left, Town weathered everything the Welfare men could throw at them to close out another well-deserved success.
The win sees Dronfield climb from nineteenth to sixteenth in the NCEL Division One table. The side they replaced in sixteenth, Shirebrook Town, are the visitors to the HE Barnes Stadium next Saturday in another big game for the team from S18.
Nostell MW: Barrow, Hawkhead, Ford, Allsop, O’Neill, Smith, Penny-Larter, Haigh, Edwards, Perks, Pickering. Subs: Procter, Wood, Walker, Bagi, Younis.
Dronfield Town: Naylor, Wright, Stewart, Lester, Hill, Bovill, Rooke, Gladwin, Bebbington, Mawbey, Terry. Subs: Mike Fereday, Siddons, Willis, Flower, Dawson.
Attendance: 55
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