Boro rise to the occasion as Brewers droop

The 3-0 success was as comfortable as the scoreline suggests, with Boro cruising to the points against a Brewers side that look to be a shadow of their previous guises.

There were three notable changes ahead of the game, with James Knowles, Ross Daly and Jamie Price all being left out of the match-day squad after they had disappointed the management team in the loss against Hyde United.

Boro looked composed from the opening exchanges, and they almost took the lead through a slick, early attack. Max Wright picked out James Cadman on the edge of the box, his shot looked to be looping into the top corner, but Michael Ingham managed to get back and claw the effort to safety.

Tadcaster seemed happy to pump long balls forward in a bid to try and utilise the height of former Boro man Tom Corner.

Set-pieces were always going to be their biggest asset, and Conor Sellars was unlucky to bend a wicked free-kick just wide of Tommy Taylor's post.

After a handful of near misses at the other end, Boro grabbed the lead just before the 20-minute mark.

Wright darted into the box and drilled in a low shot that Ingham spilled. Michael Coulson was the quickest to react and he poked home from close range.

Tadcaster should have restored parity immediately when Corner brilliantly picked out former Boro target Aiden Savory in the six-yard box. The striker got over-excited though, as he managed to smash the ball over the bar and a busy Shed.

A string of half-chances for Boro followed, with Dave Merris, Luke Dean and James Walshaw all unsuccessfully pulling the trigger.

Nathan Valentine managed to squeeze in behind the Tadcaster back-line, but his weak shot dribbled into the hands of Ingham.

Then Coulson brought another save out of Ingham and the Brewers managed to clear their lines before Merris could nip in.

Tadcaster finished the half with some fight, though Danny Stimpson got back to cover well and deny them a shot on the Boro goal.

The visitors had another great chance to level at the start of the second half when the creativity of Corner gave Josh Greening an excellent opening.

He lifted the ball over the keeper, but it sailed on over the bar and Boro survived.

This miss was punished just seconds later. Merris' dancing footwork allowed him to steal into the box and his low cross was diverted home by Valentine.

The second goal zapped all the life out of Tadcaster, allowing Boro to control the remaining minutes of the game.

Further salt was rubbed into the wounds by Walshaw, who struck his second goal since joining Boro when he swivelled beautifully in the area and crashed past Ingham.

Former Tadcaster man Jimmy Beadle and fellow attacker Nathan Curtis were thrown on by Boro in a bid to add to their tally, but with the game already killed off, the derby battle finished in muted fashion.