Match Report

Darwen beat Steeton 3-0 in their final away game of the 2024/25 season, with a hat-trick from Jack Foster having proved to be the difference in Keighley.

The Salmoners started the afternoon with the hope that another win, coupled with a good result in Maghull, would keep their play-off dreams alive, having closed the gap to just four points in midweek.

Having secured safety in the division with a win a week earlier, hosts Steeton were looking to end their home campaign on a high despite having nothing to play for.

The game struggled to get going in either final third early on, with Darwen again taking control of possession and setting the tempo they wanted.

Full-backs Pawel Zuk and Nathan Emery blocked consecutive shots from inside the box 15 minutes in to quiet the home side’s first genuine attack of the half and keep the game goalless.

Kit Lloyd showed his class once again in midfield, stepping in defensively time and again to keep Steeton out of the Darwen half, however, the visitors continued to struggle to get the ball moving when on the attack.

Jack Foster managed the first shot on target after 29 minutes, striking a shot from distance, but the keeper saw little trouble in keeping it out of his net.

Foster, Bruno Severino and Joshua Abbott all saw shots blocked one after the other, with Steeton having proved to be stubborn hosts from the start.

Darwen eventually wore them down, breaking the deadlock through frontman Jack Foster 41 minutes in with an excellent team goal.

Abbott turned his man to release Severino through the middle, the midfielder finding Connor Hughes on the right whose low cross picked out Foster in the penalty box, striking the ball into the top left corner.

The away side looked to double their advantage in the 45th minute when Hughes was brought down inside the box, but the forward saw his resulting penalty saved by Bradley Emmerson low to his right hand side, ending the half with a frustrating one-goal lead.

Darwen came out much stronger in the second half than they did the first, pinning Steeton back from the off.

However, it was the Bradford side who nearly found the second goal of the afternoon.

Lewis Gartland and Alexander Stewart both came close with chances inside 10 minutes of the restart, Gartland’s volley skimming the top of the crossbar before Stewart’s attempted lob of Louis Hood bounced wide of the left post five minutes later.

Regardless of the pressure they were under, Darwen did double their lead in the 59th minute.

Joshua Abbott’s clearance launched a rapid counter attack when it landed at the feet of Connor Hughes who composed himself to find Jack Foster in behind, the striker rolling the ball into the bottom corner for an easy second of the game.

Louis Hood made a good save on a rising shot with 15 minutes left to keep his clean sheet intact, Pawel Zuk blocking the follow-up to shut down the Steeton attack for good.

Charlie Lloyd made another goal-saving block with three minutes to go in normal time, keeping Sam Lloyd’s shot out from the edge of the box, before Darwen solidified yet another win on the road.

Yacin Amarzou nearly found the net late on with his first chance since coming onto the pitch, with Jack Foster’s subsequent corners wreaking havoc for the hosts.

His second of three inswingers was headed off the line by Jacob Holgate, before the third corner saw Nathan Bond get his head on the end, turning it goalward before the ball struck the hand of Holgate from close range, with the referee having no choice but to award a second penalty.

Jack Foster dispatched from the spot in the fourth minute of added time, making no mistake to complete his hat-trick with a shot fired into the bottom right corner.

A comfortable 3-0 win came with mixed emotions on Saturday, Euxton Villa having beaten Maghull 2-1 to confirm their hard-earned place in the Division One North play-offs.

Speaking in his post-match interview, manager Leighton Mills gave his take on the game.

“Great result, performance, not our best.” he said.

“It’s important when you don’t play well that you still pick up wins if you want to do anything in the course of a season.

“Especially coming here, they made it difficult for us, but we found a way and that was pleasing.

“Three goals and a clean sheet, you can’t ask for much more.”

Mills’ full post-match interview can be found on X: @LDownesSport, where he covered the performance in more detail, Kit Lloyd’s integral role in the team, the effect that chasing promotion has had on the squad and plans for the final game of the season against Maine Road.