Stalybridge Celtic kick off the 2015/2016 season with a loss, draw and win from their first three fixtures and thereby encapsulate the feelings of a whole season within the first week of the new campaign.
A 1-2 loss away at Hednesford Town on the opening day, was followed with a 1-1 draw at home to Bradford Park Avenue before Bower Fold saw its first three points with a 2-1 home win against Gloucester City.
Although the game was an even contest, there's no doubt that Celtic, with home advantage, would have been looking, maybe even expected, to take the spoils from this fixture and ultimately so it proved.
It was Gloucester who started the brighter of the opening exchanges with ex Celt Obi Anorou seeing one effort well saved by Tony McMillan and dragging another just wide of the far post.
Obi Anorou did find the net for Gloucester but the goal was chalked off for alongside before Celtic, through Jack Higgins, managed to repeat the trick moments later.
Celtic managed to even up the balance of play and perhaps were unlucky not to have taken the lead when Jack Higgins saw his header rebound off the bar, Jasbir Singh in the Gloucester goal well beaten.
With both sides intent on breaking the deadlock, the game developed into an end to end affair, if a little devoid of clear cut chances.
The game was settled in Celtic's favour when Chris Simm popped up in the box and was presented with an easy chance to take all three points.
Celtic therefore start the new season with something of a little symmetry and with it perhaps being a little early to assess all relative merits, any win gained can never be a bad thing.
1 | McMillan, Tony | ||
2 | Wylie, Peter | ||
3 | Chippendale, Aidan | ||
4 | Hughes, Matty | ||
5 | Higgins, Jack | ||
6 | Shaw, John | ||
7 | Dixon, Bohan | ||
8 | Wright, Dale | ||
9 | Farrell, Adam | > 60 | |
10 | Tames, Steve | > 60 | |
11 | Chalmers, Aaron | > 60 | |
12 | Crowley, Oliver | ||
14 | McKenna, Ben | < 60 | |
15 | Simm, Chris | < 60 | |
16 | Johnson, Alex | < 60 | |
17 | Lingouba, Cesaire |
1 | Singh, Jasbir | ||
2 | Hamilton, Spencer | ||
3 | Jones, Billy | ||
4 | Williams, Matt | ||
5 | Avery, Sam | ||
6 | Connolly, Adam | ||
7 | Liddiard, Matt | ||
8 | Thompson, Connor | ||
9 | Anoruo, Obi | > 63 | |
10 | Symons, Mike | ||
11 | Parker, Joe | > 81 | |
12 | White, Harry | < 63 | |
14 | Hicks, Sammie | ||
15 | Green, Mike | ||
16 | Hall, Lewis | < 81 | |
17 | Richards, Marc |