Goal-crazy Chorley just can’t stop scoring!

Free-scoring Chorley made it 13 goals in two National League North home games, as they beat Chester 4-1.
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They comfortably accounted for a Chester side looking lightweight in the more physical exchanges and fragile defensively in dealing with crosses and corners, from which all four Magpies’ goals came.

As in the Gloucester game, the contest was effectively over well before half-time as Chorley raced into a three-goal lead within 35 minutes.

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And, though the visitors rallied sufficiently to pull a goal back just before the break, the Magpies’ fourth on 51 minutes extinguished any hope the Blues may have had of making a game of it.

Harry Cardwell opened the scoring (Getty Images)Harry Cardwell opened the scoring (Getty Images)
Harry Cardwell opened the scoring (Getty Images)

Once again, it took just eight minutes for Chorley to take the lead, Billy Whitehouse floating a lovely centre across the face of goal for Harry Cardwell to head in.

Will Tomlinson was the provider for the second goal in the 21st minute, his driven cross being whipped into the net by Ollie Shenton from beyond the far post.

Cardwell met another fine centre with a firm header but with a third goal seeming certain, the ball flew just past the post.

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However, Cardwell was soon back on target, forcing the ball into the net from short range after an initial shot from Adam Blakeman’s corner had been blocked.

A tactical substitution at that stage pepped up Chester who had yet to strike a blow and they pulled a goal back just before the interval. From a well-placed free-kick Danny Livesey headed back across the six-yard box for Dan Cowan to glance a header into the corner, giving Matt Urwin no chance.

Chester finished the half attacking strongly and the Magpies were lucky to survive a hectic goalmouth scramble in added time.

Any hope of the visitors staging a full second-half recovery was destroyed within six minutes of the restart.

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The Chester defence failed to react to another searching Blakeman corner and Scott Leather stabbed home the Magpies’ fourth.

A last-ditch tackle denied the hard-working Connor Hall as he raced in from the left but the Chorley striker then missed a glorious chance to add a fifth goal, blazing over the bar with just the keeper to beat.

To their credit Chester kept going and the home defence blocked promising late efforts on goal, Urwin also pulling off a fine reflex save.

The visitors’ torrid afternoon was compounded 10 minutes from the end when skipper George Glendon was sent off for a second bookable offence.

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There was still time for Chorley to go close to a fifth goal, substitute Jacob Blyth hitting a post.

But home fans in a fine crowd of 1,520 were already well satisfied by another scintillating display from the Magpies, loudly acclaimed at the final whistle.

CHORLEY: Urwin, Henley, Baines, Leather, Blakeman, Tomlinson, Calveley, Whitehouse, Shenton (Okome 84), Hall (Alli 69), Cardwell (Blyth 56). Subs (not used): Spencer-McDermott, Scarborough.