By Stuart Dick, Head of Media
Morpeth Town made it 12 wins from 13 at home in the league, winning a nine goal thriller with Bishop Auckland 6-3.
Despite the cold weather, the action on the pitch was red hot, with Liam Henderson opening the scoring inside 21 seconds before a stunning Priestly Griffiths strike levelled the scores a minute.
The visitors then took the lead through Jeff Smith before the Highwaymen responded before the break with a header from Joe Walton and a tap in from Mark Davison.
Henderson doubled the lead two minutes into the second half, but talismanic striker Andrew Johnson pulled one back for Bishop Auckland.
Two goals in five minutes just after the hour mark gave Morpeth control, Walton adding his second with a fine volley before Michael Hall completed the scoring.
In a phenomenal start, Town took the lead with the first move of the game. After breaking down the right, Stephen Forster cut in before finding Henderson in the penalty area, who found the corner of Ed Wilczynski’s net.
From the restart the visitors won a corner, played short then out to Griffiths who was sitting deep about 40 yards out. He took a touch before unleashing a piledriver into the top left hand corner of Dryden’s net, a stunning goal.
Morpeth almost regained the lead immediately, Walton played in, but his shot was well saved by Wilczynski.
The first contentious moment of the evening came in 3rd minute, as Michael Hall nodded home a Ben Sayer corner, only for the referee to inexplicably award a foul on the ‘keeper, who had been pulling Hall back on the goal line.
Town’s pressure continued in the 5th minute, Michael Turner’s cross was turned towards goal by Davison, but straight at Wilczynski.
Two minutes later, Bishops took an unlikely lead. Jeff Smith beating the offside trap before powering a strike past Dryden to make it 2-1.
It could have been three for the visitors in the 12th minute, only the face of defender Chris Reid denying a shot on target, turning the ball behind for a corner.
The shocked the hosts back into life, and a flurry of chances besieged the Bishop Auckland goal. Firstly, Davison was denied by Wilczynski, before Reid headed wide the resulting corner.
Three minutes later Wilczynski was beaten, Sean Taylor guiding a left footed strike past the ‘keeper, but unfortunately off the right-hand post and behind.
A relatively calm fifteen minutes ensued, as Morpeth kept a hold of possession, looking for that all important equaliser.
It came with ten minutes remaining in the first period, Davison floating a cross from the left to the back post where Walton nodded home unmarked to restore parity.
Reid headed another Sayer corner off target four minute later, before Morpeth re-took the lead in the latter stages of the half, this time Walton was the provider after running on to a fantastic Forster through ball, sliding the ball across the six yard box for Davison to divert home.
Town started the second half in the same fashion as the first, with a goal. A long ball was flicked on by Davison into the path of Henderson who made no mistake from just inside the area.
Five minutes later, the visitors responded. Jon Jon Wirght, who was a good yard offside, broke on to a through ball and slid the ball across to Andrew Johnson who reduced arrears with a composed finish.
However, the visitors joy lasted just 10 minutes as Morpeth closed the game out with an emphatic five-minute spell.
The ball was worked into the box in the 62nd minute where Jordan Fry was denied by Wilczynski, but the ‘keeper could only parry the ball into the path of Walton who volleyed home from six yard out to restore the two goal lead.
And five minutes later, a Sayer corner was flashed towards the net by Henderson but stopped on the line. The rebound fell to Hall who scored his second in as many games to complete the scoring.
After that, the wasn’t many chances for either side, meaning the Highwaymen closed the gap on second placed South Shields to six points, with two games in hand.
Morpeth Town: Dryden, Forster (Robinson), Turner, Sayer, Hall, Reid (Grieve), Taylor, Walton, Davison, Henderson, Fry (Doninger).
Unused: Anderson, Chilton
Bishop Auckland: Wilczynski, Bennett, Riding, Madden, Martindale, Francis; Griffiths, Nicholls, Johnson, Wright, Smith
Subs: Noble, Ward, Carling, Fenwick, Pocklington
