Patience pays off for classy Latics

Oumare Tounkara joins Chris Taylor to celebrate Athletic’s second goal in the League One clash.

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Athletic 4, Hartlepool 0

BOUNDARY Park was awash with the feelgood factor last night.

One of the most complete performances of an enthralling npower League One campaign saw Paul Dickov’s high-flyers sweep aside Hartlepool United and, in doing so, retain fifth place in the table.

Aidan White’s tap-in was the difference in a congested first half, which required the hosts and their fans to show patience.

But a Chris Taylor strike, a thunderous drive from Cedric Evina and substitute Reuben Reid’s first goal for the club capped a barnstorming second period.

The fact Athletic can go 45 minutes without hitting top gear yet still look in control of proceedings has got even the most battle-hardened supporters believing promotion is no longer a pipedream — who would have thought that after last season’s brush with relegation?

Dickov made one change to the side that surrendered a two-goal lead at Carlisle, with full-back Paul Black, who gave away that last-gasp penalty at Brunton Park, making way for Evina.

Filipe Morais played just off target man Oumare Tounkara, with Chris Taylor on the left flank.

Morais, Taylor and right winger White interchanged throughout the course of the match, causing the

North-East outfit all kinds of problems.

With Mick Wadsworth adopting a 4-5-1 formation it was never going to be easy for Athletic to play their natural flowing football and, indeed, it was not on show until Hartlepool were forced to commit men forward.

White broke the deadlock after 10 quiet minutes. Tounkara tore down the left channel and saw his shot palmed away by goalkeeper Scott Flinders. The ball fell at the feet of Taylor and when he fed White on the edge of the six-yard box, the wing wizard made no mistake.

White had the perfect opportunity — in fact a carbon copy of his opener — to increase Athletic’s lead when Tounkara’s drive was palmed into his path, but this time his shot came back off a post when it looked easier to score.

Three bookings followed in as many minutes in a game that was far from dirty, with first Morais, receiving a needless caution for kicking the ball away after conceding a free-kick, and then Hartlepool pair Paul Murray and Gary Liddle, for a crunching two-footed tackle on Taylor, seeing yellow.

Wadsworth’s men saw their best chance of the half go begging just before the whistle, when Evan Horwood’s corner was headed inches wide by skipper Sam Collins from eight yards out.

Hartlepool peaked in the first five minutes of the second period. James Brown’s teasing cross could have found lone frontman Ryan Donaldson, but Reuben Hazell, who got his head on everything, cleared at the expense of a throw-in.

From there on in it was Athletic’s night.

Stopper Peter Hartley made a complete hash of the bounce after a long punt forward, allowing the persistent Morais to steal a march and smash the ball towards goal.

Flinders stopped it and the Portuguese’s second bite at the cherry was cleared off the line by Neil Austin, only for Taylor to blast home from six yards.

Dickov’s men had a spring in their step. Tounkara broke forward with four team-mates, but he probably chose the wrong pass when he fed Kieran Lee on the right, and the move came to a standstill.

Dale Stephens started pulling the strings in the middle of the park and was inches away from picking out Tounkara with a clever ball from the centre circle.

And his shot from all of 35 yards flew just past the upright.

Wadsworth tried to stem the tide by throwing on Leon McSweeney and vastly-experienced Ritchie Humphreys in place of Brown and Donaldson, who to be fair, had been feeding off scraps from the get-go.

The highlight of the night arrived with 20 minutes remaining.

Stephens found Evina on the left-hand side of the box and the former Arsenal man unleashed an unstoppable rocket into the top right-hand corner, to the delight of the home contingent.

Dickov saw the extra cushion as the perfect opportunity to give new forward Reuben Reid his first Boundary Park appearance.

The on-loan West Brom speedster replaced Tounkara, who received a standing ovation for his relentless workrate.

And Reid almost opened his account within seconds, latching on to a telling Taylor pass inside the box, only to see his left-foot effort smothered by Flinders.

Northern Ireland international Warren Feeney entered the fray with 12 minutes remaining, with White making way.

Ritchie Jones, on for Morais, was soon in the thick of it and when he teed up Stephens a fourth goal looked inevitable. But Collins threw himself in front of the stinging shot.

However, the icing on the cake arrived in the form of a delicious delivery from Evina which found Reid, who opened his account with a powerful close range header.

Make no mistake, Athletic are blazing the promotion trail.




Latics next game— Saturday (v Dagenham, home, npower League One)