Published at 12:20, Thursday, 08 April 2010

Ilkeston Town 1 Workington Reds 3: Workington’s remarkable winning sequence was extended to six games last night at Ilkeston’s New Manor Ground.

Gareth Arnison

The late charge for promotion glory has finally pushed Reds into a play-off place and it’s now down to any three from four.

But if there is to be anything which can halt this seemingly irresistible surge towards the Blue Square Premier, there was just a glimpse of it in deepest Derbyshire.

Already without Gari Rowntree and Anthony Wright through injuries, Reds played the last ten minutes with only ten men after top scorer Gareth Arnison limped-off with a badly jarred ankle.

All three substitutes had been used and one of them, Arnison’s regular strike partner Jonny Wright, had been deliberately held back because he is not 100 per cent fit. Still to play their fourth game in eight days, at home to Telford on Saturday, Reds are walking a tightrope.

Last night’s game was virtually Ilkeston’s last throw of the dice to stay in contention for a play-off place themselves and defeat has put them out of the contest.

The same could be said of AFC Telford, who visit Borough Park on Saturday. Unless they win to end Reds’ amazing sequence, they too will have dropped out of the race for a top five finish.

Workington have certainly seized the initiative over the last three weeks despite their run of away fixtures and this was another busy, determined, well-organised and effective display on the road.

This game took a long time to get going. Reds were not seriously troubled and dealt confidently by Ilkeston’s route one approach with Jason Lee the principal target.

When they did start to pass the ball about Reds looked capable of getting through and with home keeper Dan Lowson very suspect when he had to deal with back passes there was a growing feeling that win number five on the road was more than just a possibility.

The fact that Ilkeston took the lead on 40 minutes with a bizarre own goal was not a confidence killer. Having given teams a start on several occasions in this winning run, the belief and confidence surging through this Workington side enabled them to overcome that set-back again and bounce back to record a thoroughly deserved victory.

Amari Morgan-Smith had turned cleverly just inside the area to fire in a shot which seemed to ricochet off Lee Andrews onto Kyle May and then beyond Tony Caig into the corner of the net.

But Reds were level inside three minutes with a cracking goal from Phil McLuckie. Shaun Vipond found him in the area with a cros from the left and his fellow midfielder showed great aplomb to fire home.

Shaping to shoot with his right he wrong-footed the defenders forming a wall in front of him, before hammering home a crisp left foot drive which gave Lowson no chance.

In the second-half there as never any real question that Workington would go on and win it once they had the momentum.

Workington looked increasingly dangerous going forward, and so it proved as they took the lead on 65 minutes. Substitute Jonny Wright linked with Arnison down the left and the leading scorer held-off a Town defender as he cut in and then fired home an angled shot which beat the diving Lowson.

It was the ten men who scored the game’s final goal. Good work by Blake, who looked busy and eager for the ball during his short cameo appearance, set-up skipper Tony Hopper on 85 minutes.

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