Matlock Town produced their best performance of the season so far on Tuesday evening with a morale-boosting 3-1 home victory over league leaders Stafford Rangers in the Northern Premier League Premier Division.
A brace from midfielder Alex Wiles and a jaw-dropping goal from Kallan Murphy secured all three points for the Gladiators in a great atmosphere at The Proctor Cars Stadium.
This was Matlock's first league game since the shock departure of Paul Phillips last week and Tuesday night's victory means the Derbyshire outfit are now in seventh position in the NPL Premier Division table.
Both teams had a bright start and performed well inside the first 20 minutes of the game with some good phases of build-up play and passing on the deck. The visitors had a decent chance to take the lead in the 20th minute when Jack Baxter drilled a shot narrowly wide from 16 yards out following a corner.
It was the hosts though that broke the deadlock three minutes later following a lovely team move. Kallan Murphy (making his first ever start for the Gladiators) did brilliantly to win a header and flick the ball down the left wing. This allowed Alex Byrne to surge down the left wing and put Matlock in a great position. Close to the by-line, Byrne picked out an intelligent pass to tee up Alex Wiles. The former Gainsborough Trinity player dropped the ball down beautifully and buried the ball into the net from around the penalty spot to make it 1-0 to the Gladiators.
11 minutes later, the crowd of 565 were on their feet as they witnessed one of the greatest goals ever scored at Causeway Lane. A trademark exquisite corner from Alex Byrne found an unmarked Ioan Evans but the centre-half's close-range header ricocheted off the cross bar. A Stafford defender attempted to head the ball away from danger but couldn't land any conviction on it. With the ball falling down, 19 year-old Kallan Murphy amazed everyone by performing an overhead bicycle kick which saw the ball flash past the Stafford goalkeeper and into the net. It was an Ibrahimovic-esque strike and the crowd went suitably wild for a piece of footballing magic that doubled Matlock's advantage.
The Gladiators had a decent chance to make it 3-0 just two minutes later. Some excellent work from Kallum Mantack on the right wing resulted in an excellent cross into the penalty area. The ball was met by Alex Wiles but his 15 yard header was straight at the goalkeeper.
Matlock continued to perform to a very high standard in the second half and thoroughly deserved the victory. Just five minutes after the re-start, Murphy came agonisingly close to securing his second goal of the evening when his header from a corner flashed inches wide of the post with the goalkeeper well beaten.
Murphy had an even better opportunity to extend Matlock's lead in the 71st minute when he successfully closed down a goalkeeper clearance. With the loose ball running away towards an acute angle, Murphy chose not to strike at the first opportunity and allowed himself a couple of touches to bring the ball closer to the centre of play. Once he got his shot in though, the goalkeeper had the time to recover and make an excellent block to deny the young Irish player.
With five minutes of normal time remaining, Alex Byrne should have capped off a great performance to make it 3-0. However, he leant back too far with his 15 yard effort and the ball ballooned over the bar when the keeper should have at least been tested.
The game was killed off though just two minutes later when Alex Wiles got his name on the score sheet once again. With Stafford completely on the ropes trying to defend against a rampant Matlock side, substitute Sean Higgins teed up Wiles with a lovely pass and he stroked the ball home smartly from 15 yards out to make it 3-0 and secure all three points for the Gladiators.
The visitors hit the bar in the 90th minute through Luis Morrison-Derbyshire before Stafford bagged a stoppage-time consolation goal when Tom Tonks converted a penalty following a mistimed tackle in the box from Ryan Qualter.
After the full-time whistle, the Matlock Town players were deservedly given a very warm ovation from the crowd. It was the perfect team response following the club's bitterly disappointing FA Cup defeat just a few days earlier at the same venue.
Matlock Town team: Pollard, De Girolamo, Barnett, Evans, Qualter (c), Lees, Byrne, Whelan (Njaria 73), Murphy (Slew 84), Wiles, Mantack (Higgins 64). Unused subs: Blakeley, Day.
Attendance: 565
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