Report: Warrington Town 3-2 Lancaster City

Warrington Town defied the respective league positions of the two sides to beat league leaders Lancaster City 3-2.

The Dolly Blues took the lead inside 90 seconds through Nic Evangelinos, the first goal the Yellows had conceded at home in the league all season.

But Paul Carden’s side hit back, Jay Harris’ volley equalising on 17 minutes, before two excellent Reece Daly goals in the second half put the hosts in command.

Lancaster scored a late consolation with virtually the last kick of the game, but the Yellows had registered their third win in a week.

The game couldn’t have got off to much of a worse start as Evangelinos raced through the middle to slide the ball past Liam Isherwood for the visitors, unbeaten in the league since the opening week of the season.

An open and entertaining first half saw a number of chances, the best of which for Lancaster fell to Jim Craig, who rattled the crossbar with a half-volley.

The Yellows got back on terms when Mark Isong flicked the ball up for Harris to crash a low left-foot volley in to the bottom corner, and Niall Watson came close to putting them ahead with an acrobatic effort from Liam Brazier’s cross.

Daly scraped a post with a shot across goal and Brazier hit the woodwork late in the half with a header from Watson’s cross.

Lancaster ended the half with a good chance of their own, Craig firing over the bar from a good position off Bobby Bjork’s cutback.

The game was tighter in the second half, with only half-chances off target for Evangelinos and Chris Doyle in the opening quarter of an hour.

But the Yellows took the lead on 68 minutes when space opened up for Daly and his shot from 20 yards bounced through ‘keeper Brad Kelly.

Daly bettered that with his second goal on 75, a no-look right-footed, curling effort from the edge of the box after Harris had laid the ball off for him.

Josh Vela was twice denied late on as the Yellows cruised through the final exchanges, and though Dylan Moonan headed home from Sam Bailey’s corner in the seventh minute of injury time, it was too little too late.

Warrington are back in action at home again on Tuesday night, welcoming Ashton United to the Cal.Delivery Stadium.

Warrington Town: Isherwood, Melhado, J Doyle, Vela (Gumbs 90), Bourne, C Doyle, Brazier (Gabidon 90), Harris, Isong, Daly (Lloyd 90), Watson (Waters 86). Unused sub: Macormac.

Lancaster City: Kelly, Bailey, Fairclough (Wright 65), Moonan, Oliver, Thompson, Sloan, Bjork (Clarke 65), Mansell (Lawson 75), Craig (Caine 52), Evangelinos (Yawson 75).

Post-match reaction