Recap
Birtley withstood a late onslaught on Saturday afternoon, to earn a hard-fought point away at Whitely Bay’s Hillheads Park.
The Hoops opened the scoring in the ninth minute after Nick Marley met Joseph Hailes’s cross at the back post to nod home his sixth of the season.
The hosts almost responded straight away, with right-back Mikel Thompson striking a fantastic long-range effort which just cleared the crossbar.
In the 23rd minute the hosts did manage to draw level through leading scorer Mackenzie Sharpe, who was first to the rebound after a Max Campbell save.
Thompson came close to scoring at the other end on the stroke of half-time, as his overhit back pass beat keeper Mauro Asikaogu before going just wide.
HALF TIME | WHITLEY BAY 1-1 BIRTLEY TOWN
Birtley started strong after the break, with Liam Thear bursting into the box before striking a trademark powerful effort into the side netting, which required repairs to the net before the game could continue.
On the hour mark he went one better, pressuring Asikaogu into an error before slotting the ball into the empty net to give his side the lead.
Whitley Bay responded well to going behind, but found Birtley keeper Campbell in excellent form, diving at full stretch to deny Joshua Stewart in the 77th minute.
The hosts pulled level with ten minutes remaining. Substitute Callum Larmouth slotting his spot-kick past Campbell after Dale Burrell was adjudged to have handled the ball. Burrell felt he was struck in another part of his anatomy and there was a length delay while he got to his feet. His subsequent appeals saw him sin-binned for ten minutes.
Campbell was called into action again in the 83rd minute, with a superb double-save to keep the scores level.
Despite the home side’s pressure, Birtley could’ve taken the win at the death, with substitutes Sean Comstock and Malachi Ray-Tharpe both creating worthwhile chances deep into injury time. But it wasn’t to be, and a pulsating game ended all square.
FULL TIME | WHITLEY BAY 2-2 BIRTLEY TOWN
Birtley once again showed their resilience on the road, with a fifth away draw of the season – twice as many as any other team in the division. Next up is a trip to Thornaby next Saturday. The Teessiders sit a place below Birtley in 15th, with a single point separating the sides. It’s sure to be a close contest, and we hope to see many of our fantastic supporters make the journey.
