Heaton Stannington praised for moving on from FA Trophy disappointment

Heaton Stannington were praised for bouncing back from their FA Trophy exit at the hands of Wythenshawe with a last-gasp win against North East rivals Ashington.

The two sides failed to break the deadlock during a low key opening 45 minutes – but that all changed in the early stages of the second half as the Stan’s Cyril Giraud sent a low drive beyond Colliers goalkeeper Matty Alexander.

The visitors hit back in some style with just under seven minutes remaining as they gained some reward for an increased period of pressure and gave themselves a chance of securing a point from their short trip to The Willow Park.

It was Ryan Donaldson that grabbed the equaliser as the experienced midfielder crashed a stunning effort past hosts stopper Dan Lister after the hosts failed to deal with a ball into their area.

However, there was to be late drama as Stan sub Sado Djalo, a hat-trick hero in last week’s FA Cup replay win against Kendal Town, beat Alexander to a loose ball before firing home from a narrow angle to give his side the points with 94 minutes on the clock.

Stan manager Dean Nicholson believes his side deserved the claim the win and stressed the importance of the victory in the aftermath of Saturday’s FA Trophy exit.

He told The NLP: “It was a very Heaton Stannington thing to do – but I thought we deserved to win the game.  It was two good sides, Ashington are good, we know that and it was important we came here and got three points after Saturday.

“It didn’t matter how we did it, by hook or by crook, we just had to get the points and they have so we are delighted with that.  We said on Saturday it was a huge weekend and we were deflated at 5 o’clock that day – but we have come here and we have shown a reaction.  The substitutes made a difference, that’s why we had a busy summer to get a squad to make a difference.”

Heaton Stannington: Lister, Evans, Fil, Kanda, Milburn, Shepherd, Walker, Gascoigne, Pearson, Giraud (Hopper), Errington Subs: Hornsby, Boothroyd, Storey

Ashington: Alexander, R Powell, Taylor, Donaldson, Lowery, H Powell, Gilchrist (Cogdon), Ross, Henderson, Fenwick, Holmes (Shodeinde) Subs: Baker, Thompson, Cunningham

STAR MAN: Cyril Giraud (Heaton Stannington) ENTERTAINMENT: ★★★ ATTENDANCE: 512