Burscough 1 King's Lynn 1
9th August 2008
THE Linnets battled to get their first-ever Conference Blue Square North League point and goal at a rainy Victoria Park on Saturday.
Lynn boss Keith Webb went with a 4-3-3 formation, surprisingly leaving Julian Joachim on the bench and flanking lone striker Jack Defty with Joe Francis and Michael Frew.
Webb said: "I wanted Jack up front with a 4-3-3/4-5-1. I had Joe on the left to give us balance, while Michael Frew had been playing well in pre-season so deserved his chance.
"I spoke to Julian about it and he accepted it.
"It was good to get our first-ever Conference point and goal but I didn't think we played particularly well.
"There was a lot of huffing and puffing and there's things we've got to work on and improve.
"Losing Jack early on didn't make it easy, but Frewy's flying at the minute, and you've got to give him credit where credit's due."
Just seconds into the game Scott Howie almost let a shot from Allan Smart squirm under his stomach, but the Lynn goalkeeper recovered in time.
On five minutes Tony Evans tried his luck and Howie fumbled, but the Lynn defence cleared the danger.
Jack Defty on ten minutes set up Frew, whose effort was over the bar. That was it for Defty as he was injured with a knee in the back when challenging keeper Zak Hibbert.
Defty soldiered on but was replaced on 25 minutes by Joachim, who went out wide-right. Frew moved into the centre and did well as a target man.
This immediately paid off with a goal for Lynn in the 26th minute. Frew won a corner, taken by Francis, which Greg Crane headed goalwards.
Simon Weaver, who was standing in front of the keeper on the six-yard line, turned it over the line to score Lynn's first ever Conference goal.
Burscough forward Evans sidefooted wide a good chance from Michael Grogan's cross, while the unmarked Smart headed straight into Howie's arms.
Ben Chapman gave away a free-kick, for which home captain Brian Moogan took a long run-up, and only a great tip-over from Howie denied him.
Burscough enjoyed seven corners in the opening half, and from one Grogan went over the bar with a header.
Burscough came out looking for the equaliser, and ten minutes into the second half Smart just cleared the bar with a left-foot shot.
After 65 minutes Lynn failed to clear a corner and Chris Robinson hit the underside of the bar, and again Lynn cleared the danger.
The Lancashire Linnets levelled on 72 minutes when Robinson fed James Olsen, whose hard and low cross Howie could not quite cut out, and Evans side-footed home from close range. Chapman and Howie's protests of offside fell on deaf ears.
Lynn battled well to see out the game and preserve a point, although in injury time Bloomfield could have stolen it with Lynn's only other good chance of the game, but Hibbert foiled the substitute striker with his feet.
Burscough: Hibbert, Moogan, Bowen (Roberts 62), Armstrong, Grogan (Brookes 85), Parry (Cass 70), Olsen, Evans, Smart, Robinson. Subs not used: Roscoe, McCulloch.
Booked: Olsen 60, Evans 90.
Lynn: Howie, Weaver, Chapman, Peters, Crane, Bridgwater (Fisk 70), Frew, Sedgemore, J. Defty (Joachim 25), Camm, Francis (Bloomfield 78). Not used: C. Defty, Murray.
Booked: Weaver 75.
Ref: Mr A.C. Newell (Thornton Cleaverley, Lancs).
Attendance: 389.
MoM: Michael Frew.
Stats, Lynn first: shots on target 2, 6; off target 3, 5; corners 2, 11; offside 5, 7; free-kicks 15, 17.