League leaders Brocton beat Sandbach United 4-1 at Hind Heath Road

Written by Daniel Needham.

With 13 league games remaining, Sandbach were looking to pick up three points at home against league leaders, Brocton.

Following Bach’s away 4-3 loss against Eccleshall last Saturday, Sandbach needed to perform to continue their form and push for promotion.

However, several key players were out for Sandbach due to suspensions and injuries, such as Tom Morris and Robbie Hatton.

For the first 15 minutes of the game, both sides struggled to maintain possession, and were giving the ball away very easily. There were no clear-cut chances for either team.

Despite this, Morgan Payne opened the scoring at Hind Heath Road for Brocton in the 17th minute. Payne was gifted a simple, close-range shot after the hosts failed to clear the ball from a cross.

Although Brocton were trying to extend their lead after their first goal, Josh Oultram had a great chance to equalise as he ran onto a lobbed ball into the box. However, Oultram’s shot directed straight into Brocton’s goalkeeper, Tony Allsopp.

In the 34th minute, the visitors increased their advantage with a well-worked goal. Seb Jensen was unable to save Lucas Green-Birch’s low driven, forceful strike from outside of the box.

Sandbach responded immediately with a goal of their own. Kieran Alley’s optimistic effort from long range managed to find its way into the back of the net to pull one back for the Ramblers.

Only two minutes later, Ben Haddaway scored for Brocton after a poor defensive mistake from Sandbach to put the visitors 3-1 up before the half time whistle.

At the start of the second half, Harry Cain almost pulled a goal back for Sandbach with a deflected shot which hit the post. Alley followed it up for a rebound, but the Brocton defence dealt with the ball well.

In the 66th minute, Sandbach were caught on the counterattack by Brocton and Morgan Payne scored again to make the scoreline 4-1.

For the remaining 25 minutes, Brocton’s opportunities were coming thick and fast, yet some great stops from Jensen denied Brocton extending their lead at Hind Heath Road.
Although Sandbach United attempted to get back into the game, Brocton were solid defensively and shut down any chances. It was clear to see that vital players such as Tom Morris and Robbie Hatton were heavily missed in the fixture vs Brocton. Brocton moved forward as a unit effectively and didn’t fail to score after defensive errors from the Ramblers.
Sandbach now face New Mills at home on Saturday as they hope to get back to winning ways after their 4-1 loss against Brocton.