Pic: Arthur Haigh/WhiteRosePhotos
DEFENDER-turned-striker Simon Ainge was so surprised at scoring four goals as Harrogate Town beat Alfreton that he didn't take home the match ball!
The 28-year-old eventually picked up the memento at training on Thursday night after his remarkable scoring feat last weekend.
Ainge is probably better known as a powerful centre-half or right-back, who won promotion to Step 2 with Guiseley, played for Luton Town and England C.
But Town boss Simon Weaver might have hit on something after pushing the former Halifax Town man up front and seeing the idea pay off with a four-goal salvo.
“I played up front against Brackley in November, scored and did alright,” Ainge, who was signed as a striker by Bradford City when he was younger, told The NLP.
“We've been struggling to keep the ball up the pitch. John-Paul Pittman is a good striker and finisher, but he's been up there by himself.
“So the manager put me up there to win my headers, get the midfielders in behind with JP picking up the bits. It worked.
“No joke, I could have had six! My twitter and facebook have gone mad – I feel like a celebrity. The lads were all just laughing really.
“The manager said: ‘You haven't got a goal bonus have you?' They offered me the match ball, but I was a bit embarrassed to walk out with it to be honest. I don't know why, it was a bit surreal. I'm a centre-half and all of a sudden I've played up front and scored four goals.”
While his first two goals in the 6-3 National League North clash were headers, his second two were clinical one-on-one finishes. Not that Ainge is going to start saying playing up top is easy.
“I probably would have scored the two even if I was playing centre-half because they were from corners,” he said. “But the other ones, they were good finishes – I felt like a proper striker! But it's hard work, I didn't realise how hard it is up there.
“I know what I don't like when I'm playing in defence, so I just tried to make it as awkward as possible – be like Diego Costa! I enjoyed it.”
