Cleator Moor Celtic 5

Steeton 4

STEETON came away from this Hallmark Security League Division One North defeat hugely disappointed after dominating possession in the second half and taking the lead with 20 minutes left.

It was a twisting, three-hour journey to West Cumbria, and for the first 10 minutes of the match it appeared that the visitors were mentally still on the bus.

So disjointed was the opening period that Steeton should have been two or three behind. New signing Jordan Veillette was brought into the side at centre half, and while his overall performance and composure bodes well for the Chevrons, the opening exchanges revealed the inexperience of the centre-half pairing.

Cleator Moor opened the scoring after five minutes, Liam Johnston firing home from a wide position after a ball over the defence found him in space on the edge of the box.

There followed a period of sustained attack for the home side that should have seen them put the game to bed.

Steeton finally came to life with a passage of play that saw Ben Clarkson and Callum Meade combine well up front to create a chance. Two minutes later the pair combined again, Clarkson playing a lovely reverse ball into the path of Meade, who slotted it under the keeper for the equaliser.

As the game settled into an even contest, both sides had opportunities. And with 35 minutes gone Cleator Moor retook the lead, Ryan Hall curling an effort from the edge of the box that beat keeper Fletcher Paley at full stretch.

Steeton’s response came within 10 minutes. Sam Rooke came on in place of the injured Elliot Scott and Veillette moved to left-back. This seemed to free Pearson to get further forward and he featured high up the pitch on a couple of occasions before being the one to grab the equaliser. Outmuscling a defender inside the box, the skipper chipped his shot over the diving keeper.

The second-half started brightly for the visitors, with an Alastair Morgan cross in the opening minutes finding Clarkson in the box. The striker’s volley struck the back of a defender and bounced away to safety.

But it was the home side that again took the lead. Leigh Dunn was the first to latch on to a ball loose in the box and fired home to make it 3-2.

Steeton’s response was immediate, Clarkson grabbing another equaliser with a back heel in the six-yard box.

The home side's players objected that the ball hadn’t crossed the line but, after consulting with the linesman, the referee gave the goal.

Shortly after the goal a Cleator Moor player was sent from the field. It appeared that further discussions with the referee about the contentious goal decision had led to the red.

From this point on, and with the home side visibly tiring, the Chevrons dominated possession, playing some quick and neat football from the back. This period of good play resulted in them taking lead for the first time in the 70th minute.

A precise move through Grogan in the centre saw the ball eventually switched to Toby Jeffrey on the right. His pinpoint cross was met with an equally precise header by Clarkson for his second of the game.

Anyone who’s watched Steeton this season knows that this young team can be naïve at times, and despite playing well through the final 20 minutes, there was an uneasy feeling that it could all unravel. Which, unfortunately, in extra time it did.

The home side’s equaliser came from the spot after Veillette was adjudged to have shoved the opposition striker in the back. Substitute Darren Little sealed the 5-4 win for the home side in the 93rd minute. And unfortunately it was a goal all of Steeton’s making.

Paley gathered the ball in the area and rolled it out to Rooke. The centre-half seemed to get the ball trapped under his feet and was closed down quickly by Little. The substitute robbed the ball and dispatched a low shot past Paley for the winner.

The result left Steeton manager Roy Mason frustrated. He said: "We need to manage games better and make sure that our ball retention is better and we should have been more ruthless when they were down to 10 men and really killed the game off, while there is only one goal in the game the opposition are always still in the game and this proved to be the case again.

"I can't keep saying we are learning as clearly we are not as we wouldn't keep making the same mistakes week in week out."

Steeton: Paley, Morgan (El), Scott (Rooke), Veillette, Pearson, Grogan, Jeffrey, Rawcliffe, Meade (Hollindrake), Clarkson, Holden.