Having slumped to the bottom of the table following two lacklustre performances Guiseley were looking for an upturn in form for this afternoon’s visit to Chorley and it nearly came off but the lack of a clinical finisher once again proved pivotal as the Magpies grabbed all three points to maintain their push for the play-offs. Read how Guiseley went down to another defeat in our match report sponsored by BuildADrive.com.
Guiseley made two changes as Ollie Brown and Lewis Hey returned to the starting eleven and youngster Ellis Farrar was named on the bench.
Both sides had the ball in the net in the first five minutes but both efforts were ruled out for infringements.
The Lions were going toe-to-toe with their higher placed opponents and forced a series of corners early on that came to naught but home keeper Matt Urwin nearly presented the Lions with an opener when he fluffed his lines but as the ball fell to John Johnston he was unable to get it out from under his feet.
Kaine Felix was then next to test Urwin as he outpaced Baines only to see his shot saved but all of that was undone three minutes before half-time when Chorley were awarded a free kick thirty yards out and Guiseley failed to line up the defensive wall, leaving a gap that Adam Blakeman exploited to the full as he beat Owen Mason with a low shot in to the bottom corner.
The visitors responded by replacing Lewis Hey with Andy Kellett on the restart and gradually his influence on the game began to grow but not before Shenton had skied a good chance way over the terrace behind the goal.
Guiseley’s best chance of the game so far came on 56 minutes when a sweeping move saw Thierry Latty-Fairweather picked out by Johnston twelve yards out but the loanee seemed caught in two minds and the home defence was quick to smother his effort and clear the danger.
Reagan Hutchinson then had the ball whipped off his toes by former Lion Andy Halls as he closed in on Ollie Brown’s cross.
Halls then forced Mason into a superb save as he tipped the ball on to the bar and behind to keep his team in with a shout.
The Guiseley management then made a telling substitution as Brown went off and Gale came on and the effect was almost immediate as the striker took on the home defence only to be crowded out on both occassions.
Chorley then delivered a killer as Will Tomlinson hit a sweet shot past Mason for to put the home side two up on 65 minutes.
Six minutes later and Urwin’s fingertips denied Gale as the home stopper pushed his shot on to the bar and Prince Ekpolo was unable to get any power on the follow up.
With five minutes remaining Gale again tested Urwin leaving the Lions fans wondering why the young striker had started the game on the bench.
With Farsley losing at AFC Fylde and Blyth drawing at Boston the Lions fate is still in their own hands but a win in the local derby at Farsley this coming Tuesday, which now assumes the status of a relegation six-pointer, now looks a must.
Attendance: 693
Team: 1. Owen Mason, 2. George Cantrill, 3. Ollie Brown, (62′ Gale) 4. Prince Ekpolo, 5. Hamza Bencherif (C), 6. Lebrun Mbeka, 7. Kaine Felix (81′ Haw0, 8. Regan Hutchinson, 9. Lewis Hey (45′ Kellett) , 10. John Johnston and 11. Thierry Latty-Fairweather.
Subs: 12. Dom Tear, 14. James Gale, 15. Ellis Farrar, 16. Adam Haw and 17. Andy Kellett.
