National League Rundown: What did we learn from Round Four?

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By Sam Gale

As the games come thick and fast, the fourth round of National League fixtures delivered its fair share of drama.

The weekend games brought a big homecoming, first points on the board for a couple of sides, and saw others extend their strong starts to the season.

Sam Gale evaluates the five key takeaways from a fully-packed National League Saturday afternoon. 

Morecambe back with a bang

After a turbulent summer of ownership changes, managerial shifts, and player turnover at Morecambe, the Shrimps finally returned to domestic action against Altrincham.

In a match filled with relentless waves of attack from the away side — and with players visibly struggling after a disrupted preseason — the football gods smiled on Morecambe.

Deep into stoppage time, new signing Daniel Ogwuru, who had only put pen to paper the previous day, snatched a dramatic 98th-minute winner to seal a dream start to the season and win the game 2-1. 

Buoyed by that emphatic victory, Morecambe and their new manager, Ashvir Singh Johal, will now look to build momentum with a trip to Aldershot Town before returning home again to face Woking. 

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The Stones vs The Cumbrians

The TV cameras were at Grosvenor Vale on a lively evening as Wealdstone faced Carlisle United, with both sides looking to build on their early-season form.

The only decisive moment came in the 18th minute when the ever-reliable Luke Armstrong found the net with a glanced header. 

For Carlisle, the victory will come as a welcome boost after the recent two draws.

They will now turn their attention to Monday’s clash with Braintree Town, hoping to capitalise on this momentum and edge closer to the play-off spots, even at this early stage of the season.

Meanwhile, in spite of this game, Wealdstone will definitely be feeling comfortable with their initial two wins against Woking and FC Halifax Town and will feel that they can do big things this season. 

Shots off the mark

A handful of teams were still chasing their first points of the campaign, including Aldershot, who finally got off the mark in emphatic style.

They ran out 5-1 winners against Solihull Moors. Ryan Hill opened the scoring with two goals, one from the penalty spot and another driven in from open play.

Tristan Abrahams netted his second goal since joining the club, finishing off a slick passing move.

Kwame Thomas bundled in the third following a rebound off the crossbar, while young midfielder Jed Meerholz fired high into the net to round off a dominant win.

Brilliant beginnings extended 

With the race for a strong start heating up, Southend United, Forest Green Rovers, and Hartlepool United have ensured they remain firmly in that early-season conversation.

Southend extended their unbeaten run in Cornwall, narrowly overcoming John Askey’s Truro City thanks to a 63rd-minute point-blank strike from midfielder Sam Austin.

Furthermore, Simon Grayson’s Hartlepool made light work of Woking at home.

Goals from both Jermaine Francis and Cameron John rising highest to double their lead, and Alex Reid advancing beyond Craig Ross in the Woking net, sealed a convincing 3-1 victory for the Pools and underlined their intent for the season.

Forest Green also sent out a statement of intent in their bid to return to the EFL, edging Halifax 2-1 at The Shay.

Yahya Bamba and Kairo Mitchell provided the goals to secure a hard-fought win. They now sit top of the table, level on 10 points with the other teams mentioned. 

Standout performance from the Saints!

The standout performance of the weekend had to come in the newly-promoted side, Brackley Town, beating Rochdale. 

They took the lead early through Ryan Haynes, a free kick from distance that sailed into the upper echelons of the goal. 

Rochdale then answered back with a goal by Connor McBride, being able to travel past Gregory in the net and score with ease.

However, this was not enough for the Saints, as in the 64th minute, forward Connor Hall had his penalty effort saved and was quick enough to respond by converting moments later.

Brackley can be very happy with their start to life in the fifth tier of English football and will be looking to harness that St James Park home form.

On the other hand, despite this loss away from home, Rochdale will not panic in their bid to be in the promotion conversation at the end of the season. 

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READ MORE: Morecambe 2-1 Altrincham: Daniel Ogwuru’s just the tonic for Ashvir Singh Johal’s warriors