An own goal from Lassana Naltache and goals from Chris Howarth, Adam Clayton and Lewis Nightingale saw Farsley Celtic to a classy and dominant 4-0 victory against lowly Radcliffe Borough, writes Thomas Ritchie.
On a delightful day for football at Throstle Nest Farsley carved out the first opportunity as Ryan Watson’s free-kick fell to Adam Clayton, who shot just wide.
Jack Hindle then forced Farsley’s Graeme McKibbin into a fine save after some fine build-up play saw him played in by Jermaine Metz.
Richard Marshall fashioned a brace of good opportunities either side of Adam Clayton seeing his header cleared off the line, however on both occasions the Radcliffe defence were equal to the task.
Farsley deservedly took the lead midway through the first half as Paul Walker’s cross was headed into his own net past the helpless Kyle Haslam by Lassana Natalche.
Radcliffe came close to equalising through Jack O’Leary, who smashed his shot goal wards first time, however McKibbin made an excellent save at his near post.
Farsley continued to cause havoc from set pieces, and it was no surprise when The Celts doubled their lead from a corner. Chris Howarth rose highest to nod home Lewis Nightingale’s corner past Haslam in the Radcliffe goal.
Moments before halftime Farsley extended their advantage as Jordan Deacey latched onto Ryan Watson’s low cross and saw his shot saved by Haslam straight to Adam Clayton who tapped home.
Farsley’s dominance continued into the second half, with Lewis Nightingale delivering another terrific corner, this time towards Richard Marshall who’s header was cleared off the line by O’Leary.
The game was over as a contest on the hour as Farsley made it four. A powerful run by Paul Walker allowed him to break into the area before picking out Lewis Nightingale who calmly swept home to seal the victory.
Nightingale then earned The Celts a penalty as he was felled in the box by Radcliffe captain Darren Torpey. Aaron Hardy stepped up to take the spotkick, however his strike was superbly saved by Kyle Haslam who prevented Farsley from scoring their fifth of the afternoon.
Farsley comfortably saw out the remaining twenty minutes to earn a crucial, confidence boosting three points which keeps them top of the league heading into Tuesday’s West Riding County Cup Final.
Farsley Celtic: McKibbin, Hardy (c), Howarth, Turner, Clayton, Daly, Nightingale, Watson, Marshall, Deacey, Walker (Atkinson 62). Unused subs: P. Davidson, Colley, Morgan.
Radcliffe Borough: Haslam, Metz, O’Leary, Natalche (Rokka 66), Eisley, Torpey (c), Ready, Ahmed (Belezika 78), Deilley, Hindle (Raheem 61), Zhekov. Unused subs: Burns, Leigh.
MOTM: Lewis Nightingale
Attendance: 173