Bridlington Town hit top gear to beat visitors West Auckland 3-0
Bridlington Town delivered a commanding performance to secure a comfortable 3-0 victory over West Auckland Town on Tuesday, led by an Ahmed Salam brace and a brilliant finish from Casey Stewart.
Bridlington set an aggressive tone from the opening whistle, creating multiple early chances through Casey Stewart and Ahmed Salam. West Auckland threatened on the counter around the mid-way point of the half, but their efforts went wide.
The breakthrough came in the 29th minute.
Destiny Nnenanya outmanoeuvred his defender on the wing and drilled a low cross into the box. The ball found itself stuck between the feet of a defender who couldn’t sort out his feet and the ball popped out the back, Salam seized on the loose ball and rifled it into the net to make it 1-0.
Bridlington pushed to extend their lead, with West Auckland's goalkeeper making a fine save from a curling Pratley effort in the 36th minute.
Just a minute later, Stewart found himself wide open on the edge of the attack, staying composed to finish past the keeper and double the advantage before the break.
Riley Cooper replaced the injured Coist Walker ahead of the second half.
Bridlington kept up the pressure early in the second period.
Destiny and Charlie Birdsall linked up for a volley that went inches wide, while West Auckland's keeper did well to tip a dipping Salam free-kick over the bar.
In the 61st minute, Bridlington put the match out of reach. Following a corner, the ball was reworked out to Tom Allan, the defender was hanging on the right wing, Allan played the ball inside to Salam, who cut onto his left foot and slotted it home for his second of the match and Bridlington's third.
Shortly after, Toby Marriott came on for Charlie Birdsall. Marriott almost added a fourth in the 75th minute after breaking the offside trap, but his one-on-one effort was denied by a leg save.
Bridlington refreshed their line-up late on with a triple substitution – Billy Marshall, Luca Bolino, and Eddie Kettlewell replacing Stewart, Salam, and Destiny.
Brid wanted a fourth and Marriott had yet another effort denied by the keeper. Into added time and Ben Tweed rattled the upright with a 92nd-minute free-kick to cap off a dominant evening.
Scott Kerr and his Seasiders, will travel to Silsden this Saturday as they look to make it four wins from four in all competitions, before heading back home the following Saturday in the FA Trophy against Whitby Town.