Nantwich Town 2 - 0 Bamber Bridge

Goals in each half from Nantwich Town saw Bamber Bridge taste a 2-0 defeat on the road, despite a positive performance.

The visitors dominated large spells of play but a goal from Callum Saunders in the first half and another late on from Joe Malkin proved enough to see Brig off.

Brig started the game lively on a pristine pitch, both Adam Dodd and Ali Waddecar went close inside five minutes with powerful strikes from the edge of the box.

But despite their positive start, Nantwich were gifted a glorious chance to open the scoring from the penalty spot, when Danny Glover was brought down in the box under the challenge of goalkeeper Lloyd Rigby.

Up stepped Glover but Rigby redeemed himself with a brilliant low save to palm the penalty kick away and keep the score goalless.

With 20-minutes gone both sides had settled into the game.

The hosts did go close though with a thunderous left footed volley from Louis Barnes that flew wide of the right hand post.

Brig continued to knock the ball around well and Darren McKnight went close on the half-hour mark, with a clean strike from 25-yards that darted just over the bar.

And Micky Taylor's side came even closer five minutes later, when Matt Dudley's shot from the edge of the box took a slight deflection and rattled out off the post.

But with seconds of the half left the visitors were dealt a harsh blow, when Saunders was on hand to bundle the ball home from close range following a high ball into the Brig box.

That wasn't the last piece of action though and Brig must've felt like it wasn't going to be their night, when McKnight crashed an unbelievable free kick from 30-yards off the underside of the crossbar, seconds before the interval.

Brig came out in the second half in the same way the ended the second.
And with 10 gone in the half a fine piece of goalkeeping from Will Jaaskelainen denied them the equaliser, when the No.1 brilliantly saved Waddecar's first-time low strike following a clever free-kick routine.

Nantwich did grow into the half but it was the visitors in red that were the ones creating the chances and openings - Matt Lawlor went close next with a guided header just over the bar.

Despite the relentless pressure, with eight minutes of the half left Nantwich doubled their lead when substitute Malkin nipped in to latch onto a long ball and lob the ball over Rigby and into the back of the net.

Waddecar saw a powerful free-kick saved in the last minute and that proved to be the last piece of action as Brig fell to a harsh 2-0 defeat.

Match reporter: George Hodgson (@GHodgsonSport)