Gainsborough Trinity won in their final game in hand of the season, beating strugglers Whitby Town 2-1 thanks to goals from Fraser Preston and Lewis Butroid.
Following their 1-0 defeat to FC United of Manchester, the Holy Blues managed to get back on track with a goal in either half to see off the Seasiders.
A lacklustre first-half:
Whitby created the first real chance of the match, with striker Mitchell Curry being played in behind before hitting an effort towards goal, but goalkeeper Dylan Wharton came out and made himself big to deny an early opener.
Trinity managed to find the opener just after the 10 minute mark. Preston stood over the free-kick, and whipped it into the top corner, with Seasiders’ goalkeeper Shane Bland unable to get anywhere near it.
Whitby attempted to respond with a free kick of their own, as Layton Watts hit an effort from 25-yards out, but Wharton collected the ball at the second time of asking.
Penalty shouts were in referee Aaron Hallam’s ears, as Declan Howe was impeded after a high press from himself, and Javelle Clarke. Howe seemed to be caught by Bland in the box, but the referee decided to award a goal kick, rather than a penalty.
The Seasiders created a big chance at the end of the first half, when captain Jassem Sukar found himself free between the six-yard box and penalty spot. However, his right-footed effort was poor, as he hit it wide of goal.
Second-half pressure:
The second half had chances few and far between, with both sides failing to create anything clear. Final balls released were poor, creating frustration for all the attackers involved.
Gainsborough did have the first major chance of the second half, as Jordan Helliwell played a beautiful ball into the path of Clarke. The attacker’s effort was a chipped one, but was unlucky as it landed wide of the net.
Trinity did manage to double their advantage just after the hour mark. Local hero Lewis Butroid found himself with time on the ball from long distance, and his decision to shoot seemed a no-brainer, as he hit a bullet into the bottom corner, giving Bland no chance of getting close to it.
Whitby got themselves back into the game with just over 20 minutes to go. A cross in was met by the head of Tymon, who managed to direct it into the back of the net, out of reach of Wharton.
The goal from Whitby led to continued pressure from the Seasiders, who fought hard to try and create chances, which were very little. The Holy Blues did well to fight the pressure, clearing any danger and trying to counter in doing so.
Wharton was called into making a superb save late on to keep Gainsborough ahead. Watts received the ball from a chip over the defence, and his late volley after a chest down was saved well, as Wharton made himself big and Gainsborough managed to eventually clear any danger.
That was it for Gainsborough, who managed to get a win, pushing themselves to seventh in the league, eight points from the play-offs.
Next up for Trinity is a trip to Bamber Bridge on Saturday, as Gainsborough hope to push on in their play-off chase.