Match Report

Darwen hosted Fulwood Amateurs where they were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw in their sixth NWCFL First Division North fixture.

The Salmoners dropped two points in heartbreaking fashion, as the visitors equalised in the final minute of injury time after Joshua Abbott’s first half screamer had them trailing for the majority of the game.

Fulwood were close to the perfect start away from home, after Spencer Lucas had the ball in the back of the net inside 30 seconds before the flag went up for offside.

The hosts picked up the pace straight away following the early scare, with Akim Samms and Brandon Dawson battering both sides of the defence for pace.

Jack Gooden’s under hit back-pass gifted Lucas another chance in front of Louis Hood after 15 minutes, but the striker failed to punish the mistake.

Samms continued his positive play in what was the forward’s first start of the season, combining well with full-back Pawel Zuk down the right wing.

Dawson joined in repeatedly with a number of successful direct runs troubling the Fulwood defence, before picking up a largely unfair yellow card for an accidental follow-through.

Darwen eventually got their reward for a half played predominantly in the final third of the pitch, with Abbott finding the net via a superb volley on the 41-minute mark.

Jack Foster ended a brilliant piece of play with a header finding Abbott on the edge of the 18-yard box, his strike dipping just in time to nestle in the top of the net past a helpless Jacob Barry.

The Salmoners’ deserved lead was left vulnerable at the start of the second half, Zuk being called into action to head a shot off the line to keep his side ahead.

Despite a narrow lead Darwen managed to confidently start to see the game out.

Will Shawcross came close to opening his account after Abbott’s reverse pass found him free in the box, but the midfielder could only direct his effort into the side netting.

The hosts continued to control the pace as the game looked to be petering out to a comfortable win, Gooden and Shawcross both nearly doubling their lead from distance with Barry exposed and off his line.

With the six additional minutes played out Fulwood managed to break for a final chance, with Lucas cutting back in the box and firing home for an equaliser at the death.

The late drama leaves Darwen ninth in the table, three places behind Fulwood Amateurs and without a win in two games.

Manager Leighton Mills reacted to the result post-match, saying: “I thought we were very, very good. We asked the lads on Wednesday and pre-match for a reaction. I thought we ran all over them.

“I was really pleased with the performance levels individually and collectively. We’ve just been on the wrong end of an absolute sucker punch. It’s a horrible way to drop points.”

“It’s tough on the lads, I feel sorry for them, because that’s hard to take. We shouldn’t have been punished, because it should have been full time.”