National League North - Matchday 5
Attendance 1,822

Rees 34’

It was a case of deja vu for Paul Michael as he saw his Merthyr team slip to back to back home defeats, with Scarborough Athletic walking away with three points after a spirited second half comeback.

Following the comfortable 3 - 0 away win to Curzon Ashton, it was Merthyr who came out of the blocks firing on all cylinders and took control of the game early on. Kieran Evans, Livermore & Twamley were continually given acres of room in the middle of the park which allowed Merthyr to get a real foothold into the game, probing the Seadogs defence with balls in behind to Rees.

Despite the early dominance, it was Scarborough who almost opened the scoring on 23 minutes, when Colville put in a dangerous corner into the box, which seemed to miss everyone and flash across the face of the goal. This seemed to spur the homeside on, with Kieran Evans playing in Rees, which had Jake Hull in all kinds of trouble. Whitley was quick to react and clear his area but the writing was on the wall.

Two minutes later, Twamley was able to split the Scarborough CBs with a pinpoint pass to the right, allowing Rees to once again get in behind. Despite pressure from the retreating Thornton, he kept his composure and slid his shot low past Whitley. 1 - 0 Merthyr and there could be no complaints at all.

The Martyrs continued to dominate with their passing and it felt like it was only a matter of time before they added a second. Twamley was put in from a lofted ball by Handley, and lobbed the keeper, but was unable to direct it onto goal. Despite the dominance of the first half, Scarborough were unlucky not to go in even at the break, when Bennett was able to control a drilled pass with his left foot. Despite Handley coming back, Bennett was able to get a strong shot off with Cogman saving to his bottom right. The first real action for Jaimie of the half.

Merthyr started sluggish after the break, although it was Twamley who was able to drive from the halfway line early on and turn Hull inside out but put his shot over the bar. From here the momentum shifted to the Seadogs who were now winning the loose balls and dominating midfield. It was Scarborough who made the first change, with Walker coming on for Bennett on 56 minutes and his impact was immediate. Alex Brown picked up the ball on the left and whipped in a cross to the incoming Walker, who caught it first time and flicked it past Cogman. 1 - 1.
Three minutes later Merthyr fell behind following Duckworth's ball into the area, with Hull winning the header and the ball falling to Wiles, who was able to drill it home from short range. The home team made their first changes on 66 minutes as Livermore and K.Evans went off, as they tried to chase the game. Scarborough were at this time content to sit back in their half and Merthyr were unable to create any sustained pressure.
The third and final goal came from another long throw from Brown, with Rio Allan able to react first and slot past Cogman. Ricardo was unlucky late on in the game, with a shot cleared off the line by Weledji who denied a certain goal.
A well deserved victory for Scarborough after their second half performance, but Merthyr will be disappointed to have not made their early dominance pay.

Final Score Merthyr 1 - 3 Scarborough Athletic

Gavin Burns