Despite dominating the game visitors Guiseley had to settle for a scoreless draw against Stalybridge Celtic at Bower Fold this afternoon and stretch their unbeaten run to four games in the process writes John Clements.
Exuding a confidence that three wins on the bounce imbues, Guiseley were straight out of the blocks and put their hosts under immediate pressure with John Johnston firing over from a good position in the very first minute.
The relentless pace continued with chances coming and going throughout the half and the home side had keeper Greg Hall and centre back Darius Waldron to thank for keeping the Lions at bay.
Hall made a good stop from Johnston on four minutes and then punched the resulting corner clear while Waldron was having a battle royal with Lions dangerman Jake Cassidy.
Two further corners came to nought and when Adam Haw’s shot was blocked Charlie Wood put the loose ball just the wrong side of the post. The striker then combined well with Johnston only to see his shot from the edge of the area cannon back off the post with Hall rooted to the spot.
In between times Raul Correia went close with a header for the home side but Celtic nearly conceded on the stroke of halftime as George Smith’s speculative lob towards goal saw Hall stepping back to make the catch only to stop just the right side of his goaline.
The second half continued in much the same vein with Wood smashing another shot against the upright and Luke Dean was just a hairsbreadth away from converting a cross.
Jameel Ible headed Johnston’s corner just wide, and the winger caused more consternation in the home defence as his cross was a whisker away from Cassidy as it sped across the six-yard box.
Even four minutes of added time couldn’t separate the two teams and although the home side had offered some resistance in the second period, they had not really troubled Kyle Trenerry as the Lions’ defence held firm.
Unable to turn their domination into three points, despite rattling the woodwork twice, it’s a measure of how far the Lions have progressed since last May, that this will be seen as two points lost rather than a point gained.
But next up it’s Bamber Bridge at Nethermoor on Monday afternoon, kick off 3pm before we embark on this seasons Emirates FA Cup quest when we entertain North West Counties League Premier Division team AVRO on Saturday 3rd September.
Stalybridge Celtic 0-0 Guiseley | Saturday 27th August 2022 | Bower Fold
Attendance: 351
Team: 1. Kyle Trenerry, 2. Ethen Vaughan, 3. George Smith (C), 4. Luke Dean (90′ Greaves), 5. Spencer Harris, 6. Jameel Ible, 7. John Johnston, 8. Charlie Wood, 9. Jake Cassidy, 10. Adam Haw (45′ Cartwright) and 11. Lewis Hey (80′ Prata).
Subs: 12. Eddy Prata, 14. Jerome Greaves, 15. Jorge Sikora, 16. Ethan Cartwright and 17. Andy Kellett.
Images from todays game at Stalybridge can be found here as can others from Tuesday’s game against Whitby Town
