Morpeth Town started their pre-season campaign with a 2-1 defeat at home to former Northern League rivals Whitley Bay.
With plenty of familiar faces in the opposition ranks in the shape of former manager, and current Academy Head, Nick Gray, midfielder Sean Taylor and defender Michael Hall, it was a clash of friend turned foe.
The hosting Town started the brighter of the two sides, with Jack Foalle seeing a sixth minute effort blocked by the Whitley Bay stopper. Chris Reid then nodded a Foalle ball in from the right three minutes later as the Highwaymen threatened an opener.
Reid then spurned another chance a minute later, with the former Whitley Bay defender denied by the keeper. A Morpeth trialist was denied by a visiting defensive block before Liam Noble curled a shot just past the top corner.
It took until the 23rd minute before Town keeper Dan Lowson was called into action, getting down low to smartly push an effort on to the post.
Foalle flashed a drive over the top before the first goal of the game came four minutes before the interval with Whitley’s captain nodding in from close range after a corner was headed back across goal.
With a near-completely changed team for the second half, Morpeth upped the ante and found an equaliser nine minutes in through Dale Pearson.
The striker, making his second debut for the club after featuring for us as part of the FA Vase winning squad, bundled in an effort from close range to get his second stint at the club off to a goalscoring start.
On the hour mark, Bay’s number 15 curled an effort with the outside of his boot just wide before his side scored a decisive second with a quick counter ending up with a rasping drive that beat Lowson.
Despite a late flourish, which saw Pearson have the ball pinched off his toes with the goal at his mercy, there’d be no more goals.
Morpeth are next in action when travelling to Hemel Hempstead on Saturday before a trip to Dunston seven days later.
MORPETH FIRST HALF: Lowson, Trialist A, Reid, Sayer, Trialist B, Henderson, Foalle, Noble, Trialist C, Trialist D, Johnson.
MORPETH SECOND HALF: Lowson, Robson, Trialist, Trialist, Morris, Turner, Thomson, Trialist, Pearson, Donaldson, Trialist.
