Team - Campbell.D Lyth McWilliams Hassan Ingram Burgess Gildea.L(Yale 88) Beadle Leeson Scott Campbell.A(Hackworth 49) subs Lambert Escritt
Report - By Duncan Atkins, For all your latest Sports News check out The Whitby Gazette
A JIMMY Beadle brace, including a goal of the season contender, gave Whitby Town an impressive victory over title-chasers Boston on Wednesday night.
Striker Andy Campbell returned up front for the Blues following a spell out injured, linking up with the versatile Leon Scott and emergency forward Andy Leeson, who has already grabbed five goals this season pushing up from defence.
Boston posed the first threat to goal as the towering Danny Davidson fired across the face of goal from an angle while Danny Sleath’s powerful header was blocked.
Beadle outlined his intentions on six minutes with a well-aimed shot which lacked the potency to trouble visiting keeper Tom Evans.
An uneventful opening half-hour suddenly exploded into life when Beadle arrowed home a fantastic strike into the top corner from 30 yards to send the Turnbull into raptures.
An immediate reply looked on the cards as Sleath teed up a strike but it flashed narrowly wide of the far post through a crowd of players.
Five minutes before the interval, Scott almost produced a carbon copy of Beadle’s wonder goal from a similar distance, with the swerve on his shot taking the ball into the grateful Evans’ arms.
Boston’s hopes of getting back into the game took a blow only a minute after the restart as Andy Campbell latched onto a useful long ball and outpaced Chris Wood, who felled the ex-Middlesbrough man in the box for a clear penalty.
With no covering defender, last man Wood should have been sent off but escaped with a caution from referee Neil Sharp. But punishment was swiftly delivered as Beadle stepped up to smash home from the spot, in off Evans and into the roof of the net.
The Lincolnshire outfit, second in the UniBond Premier prior to kick-off, brought on former Peterborough striker Ryan Semple to give them some added spice going forward.
Semple tested Dave Campbell with a deep free-kick which could have embarrassed a keeper of lesser experience, but later blazed over when well placed to pull a goal back.
Meanwhile, Beadle, seeking a hat-trick, hit another fizzing strike not too far wide of the mark for Whitby while at the back, Ibby Hassan and Whitby man of the match Kev Burgess snuffed out any threat from the visitors with a defiant rearguard display which made last week’s humiliation at Durham City all the more implausible.
As Boston became increasingly desperate, Semple’s dive in the box failed to impress Mr Sharp, with a flurry of protests falling on deaf ears.
The game threatened to boil over eight minutes from time as Anthony Church’s unholy reaction to a Burgess challenge sparked ‘handbags’ near the far touchline and resulted in the pair earning yellow cards.
The amateur dramatics brought about five nervy minutes of extra time, but Whitby ran down the clock without any further incident to secure three welcome and fully deserved points.
