Littletown 2, Steeton 1

STEETON crashed to their first West Riding County Amateur League defeat since August in a niggly game on Saturday.

Leading scorer Lee Reilly reported sick on the morning of the match, meaning the Chevrons had to change their formation to a 3-4-3 system.

Skipper Damien Whiteoak returned to the side following his appearance with the reserves last week.

In a cagey opening, neither side really looked like carving any decent chances. The nearest one fell to Littletown, who struck the bar with a long-range effort.

Steeton felt they should have had a penalty as Graham Holmes was bundled to the ground but the referee deemed otherwise and waved their protests away.

The home side took the lead on the half-hour mark when a high ball was not dealt with and Kurt Harris headed home.

Steeton looked to get back on level terms as Andy Holden was just over with a free-kick and Tim Hird was narrowly wide with a drive from the edge of the box.

The second period saw more Steeton pressure and Holmes almost levelled when he spun and struck a shot narrowly wide.

It looked more a case of when rather than if Steeton would score – but they were caught throwing men forward and the hosts hit them on the break, with Harris looking suspiciously offside when applying the finishing touch.

Josh Brooksbank was then called into action, making a flying save to keep Steeton in the game.

With the clock running down, Sam Rooke – who had been thrown up front as an emergency striker – swivelled and fired in to reduce the arrears.

With the hosts wasting time at every opportunity, Steeton manager Roy Mason was sent from the dugout for disputing the referees' decision to only play one minute of additional time.

It was a frustrating day for Steeton, who were looking to climb the table. But in truth the side lacked pace to trouble the home defence enough and they missed the guile of Reilly in the final third.

Mason is hoping the striker has recovered for his side's County Cup Clash with Rawdon Old Boys at Summerhill Lane Saturday.