Southport throw away 2 goal advantage and lose 3-2

After crusing into a 2-0 lead after just ten minutes and never having their goal threatened until the 35th minute, somehow it all went wrong and the home side came back and got a deserved win late on.

It had started so brightly, for the vistors, firstly Jordan Archer fired home from close range in the 6th minute  and the lead was doubled in the 10th minute when Marcus Carver turned the ball home after a powerful Keenan Quansah header from a corner found him in space to prod home.

Ther first half was setting the world record for the number of fouls given by the referee in a half of football which lead to a stop start game.

Gloucester were coming more into the game as the half wore on and it didn’t come as any surprise when they pulled a goal back in the42nd minute through Scott MCClure. 2-1 at half time to Southport. The irony with the goal was the one blatant foul the referee didn’t give when Carver was brought down from behind had lead to the goal.

As for the second half, it was not good on the eye as once again the referee was centre stage giving foul after foul and that was to both sides, there were 22 fouls in the second period alone.

Southport had a great chance to get the two goal cushion back when Niall Watson pulled the ball back to Archer who should have done better but fired tamely at the ‘keeper.

Gloucester were always looking the more likely to score and it was substitute Kieran Phillips who equalised in the 69th minute.

It was proving very difficult for Southport to make any inroads into the Gloucester backline who looked far more comfortable than they had earlier in the game.

The equaliser had come just 90 seconds after Archer who was one of a few of the visiting players who appeared to be carrying knocks was replaced by Michael Carberry.

Unfortuantely it was looking inevitable the home side would now go on and win the game and it was substitute Phillips who fired home in the 88th minute to complete the comeback.

We had no idea how much added time was going to be played (no boards displayed), the general view that with all the stoppages and time wasting there could esaily have been 7/8 minutes but the referee drew the game to a close after five added minutes.

Line Up: Mason, Oliver, Anson, Evans. Archer (Carberry 67), Carver, Walton, Quansah, Hmami (Munro 76), Watson, Bainbridge.

Unused Subs: Doyle J, Doyle C, McMillan

Att 939

Media MOTM Tyler Walton