Penalty misses cost Town

The result puts a dent in the Blues quest for a fifth place finish, which would mark their joint highest Central Midlands League finish.
Despite a comfortable 5-2 win in the away fixture just three weeks ago, Newark’s attacking play was distinctly lacking in pace and bite. James Munson came the closest to scoring early on, but he missed the target with a free header in the 20th minute. Rhys Stanley, making his first league start, also went close moments later, shooting wide following a good turn of pace. Easington, currently lying second bottom in the league, were happy to soak up any pressure and play on the counter attack.
The game sparked into life just before half time, as Easington took the lead with a rare piece of quality. Steff Radley beat the offside trap with a brilliantly timed run to catch the home defence completely off guard. He rounded stand-in goalkeeper Gary Richmond, also on debut, with ease, before keeping his composure to slot the ball into the corner.
Newark’s response was swift, and just a minute later they had a glorious chance to go in level at the break as Arron Martin was fouled in the penalty area by Andy Graham. However Alex Hales’ resultant spot kick was a nice height for Charlie Dixon to produce a diving stop and maintain the visitors’ lead going into half time.
Any hopes that the second half would see more urgency from the home side were quickly dashed, as the Blues were simply unable to break down a determined Easington back line. The introduction of Reece Self on the hour mark gave the Blues a little more spark going forward, but not enough to create anything more than half chances.
With much of the match taking on an end of season feel, Newark eventually produced a late flurry of chances in pursuit of an equaliser. Sam Wilford produced a pinpoint cross to Hales, who squandered an excellent position by shooting inches wide. Then in the 88th minute, Newark were awarded their second spot kick of the afternoon after Jordan Hart handled in the area. Luke Parsons took the responsibility, but he too was denied as Dixon blocked the low effort with his legs. That proved to be the final nail in the coffin, as Easington recorded their fifth win of the season.
Tony Joynes cut a frustrated figure at full time, Wednesday’s home match with Clay Cross Town now taking on added significance in the battle for fifth place. “You can’t expect to win a match after missing two penalties. I tried to emphasise the importance of the match before kick-off, but the game just had that end of season feeling about it. We need to be sharper in midweek if we’re going to have any chance of getting the top-five finish.”

Report by Rick Lane Photo by Kev Goodman