An experienced Falcon Pine line up gave title hopefuls Halifax Pheonix a shock by romping to a 2-0 half time lead and then extended their lead to 3-0 before Pheonix mounted a comeback and finally with just 5 minutes left on the clock equalised through sub Ziane Ahmed as he capitalised on a slip by Pine Jonny Brownridge to score past Ben Orchard.

 

The first half belonged entirely to Pine as they worked hard against the strong wind and it was no surprise to see them score first through Mike Jordan as he battled well to win the ball before scoring into an empty net following a pass from Bob Bartle.

 

Shortly after Matt Holroyd won Falcon a penalty as Bilay Ahmed handled his shot to concede a certain penalty despite the ludicrous appeals of the Pheonix players. Craig Smith scoring from the spotkick with a powerful shot.

 

Totally in control Falcon Pine dominated the early 2nd half exchanges and captain Stephen Scholey smashed home the ball past the helpless Yassar Mohammed following an excellent passing move between Holroyd, Jordan and man of the match Matthew Chapman.

 

Tensions mounted as Pheonix appealed against every decision and strong refereeing by Sean McMoran ensured that a lid was kept on the game with his sensible approach and he somehow got through the game without showing any cards.Just as well as Halifax Pheonix were playing only their 2nd game in almost two months due to sanctions brought about by the Halifax Sunday League following some major incidents in previous games.With the eyes of the Sunday League on them, Pheonix came through this test unscathed.

 

A penalty that went Pheonix`s way was wasted as Aouken Mikall blazed high and wide but Chris Woodhouse saved them as her smashed home two brilliant goals, the first a low drive and the 2nd with just 15 minutes remaining blasted into the top corner.

 

Pine keeper Ben Orchard who was having a very good game could do nothing to stop all three of Pheonix`s goals and at the end shell shocked Pine were glad to hear the final whistle.