A penalty, a red card and a last minute winner were just some of the chaos that unfolded during Bishop’s narrow loss to travelling side Whitley Bay at the Bishop Auckland Brewery Stadium last night. With the referee being the centre of attention.
The game, under the floodlights, began with Bishop looking to pick up their first points in the league this season. Whitley Bay looked promising in the first half, with Kris Summers heroically clearing the ball from the line after the Whitley Bay attacker rounded Nick Liversedge. This early scare wasn’t the only one of the half, as a poor pass back from the Bishop defence resulted in an indirect free-kick for Whitley Bay. It felt almost inevitable that Whitley Bay would take the lead, but the shot was blazed over the bar and relief spread around the ground.
Bishop came out the second half, arguably the weaker team, but that didn’t stop Luke Hogan from winning a penalty after some neat skills, just inside the box. Bishop’s number 9, Craig Hutchinson, stepped up and coolly dispatched the penalty to the keeper’s bottom right, who dived the wrong way.
Bishop’s lead was short lived. In the 56th minute, a deep corner picked up at the back post by the Whitley Bay attacker and passed inside, was cleverly finished with a curling shot from the left hand side of the box, gliding past the stationary Liversedge.
Whitley Bay soon rattled the woodwork, subsequent to a poorly missed header from the Bishop defender leaving the Whitley Bay striker one on one. The Bishop recovery was just enough to put off the striker who’s shot thundered against the left-hand post, much to the disbelief of the Whitley Bay bench and manager. Bishop soon punched back, after Liam Goldsborough put in a teasing delivery into the box, causing the keeper to spill the ball to Luke Hogan, who didn’t have enough time to react, disappointingly scuffing his shot over the bar.
The referee was then in the spotlight, showing a second yellow card to the Whitley Bay defender, with a sarcastic cheer oozing out of the Bishop fans in attendance. With the game coming to an end, Bishop piled on the pressure. But, in the 92nd minute, a quick attack from Whitley Bay, a low cross into the box, and the ball being bundled in by the striker was enough for the visitors to rob Bishop of at least a point within the dying embers of the game.
Bishop look for a better result on Saturday, hosting Billingham Synthonia in the FA Vase.
Photos courtesy of Joe Gorman:
