Albion’s play off hopes took a knock with a 0-3 defeat to Yarm & Eaglescliffe who moved to the top of the table with the win. Trailing 0-1 at the interval, RACA’s cause was made harder when Jack Errington was dismissed on 47 minutes & the hosts went on to score another two goals to inflict Ryton’s first defeat of 2025
MATCH SUMMARY
Albion came into this clash with second placed Yarm And Eaglescliffe unbeaten since before Christmas, but facing a side high in confidence and unbeaten in eleven games across all competitions.
It was the hosts who created the first chance of note in the game from a 9th minute Sam Lawrence corner which swung dangerously towards Dan Jones’ head but Brogan Colquhoun in the Albion goal was able to push the ball to safety before Jones could make contact. Yarm almost did open the scoring just a minute later when from a breakaway, Tom Atkinson laid a ball through to Harry Williams whose shot beat Colquhoun, but Josh Skivington was able to get back in time to clear the ball off the line. The Eagles continued to create the chances, Colquhoun plucked an Atkinson header out of the air on 13 minutes & on 26 minutes Josh Marshall saw his goalbound shot deflected for a corner from which a Joe Dalton header clipped the top of the Ryton bar. Josh Larkin brought a comfortable save out of Colquhoun in the 32nd minute while Atkinson fluffed his lines just seconds later when set up by Williams. At the other end of the park, Yarm keeper Lee Roberts was a virtual spectator as RACA lacked their usual punch up front, & on 40 minutes the hosts deservedly went ahead, Josh Larkin’s chip up front finding Atkinson whose shot bobbled off Colquhoun’s leg and just had enough to trickle over the line. Out of nowhere RACA could and maybe should have had a penalty just before half time when Michael Baxter was brought down by Jack Dalton from what looked a good two feet inside the box. However referee Mr Batty only awarded a free kick just outside the box & Fergus Lynch’s effort was charged down by the two man wall.
HT Yarm & Eaglescliffe 1 RACA 0
RACA got the second half off to a bad start when Jack Errington was shown a straight red card for an industrial lunging tackle on Josh Marshall, & the Tyne Valley outfit were now right up against it. Following treatment Marshall responded by putting his side 2-0 up in the 48th minute, heading home from Lawrence’s free kick awarded following Errington’s tackle. The game was put beyond Ryton’s reach on 62 minutes when Williams found an unmarked Larkin in the box & he duly fired home to make it 3-0. All a bit late but thereafter Albion became more dominant in the game and even had Roberts in the Eagles’ goal stretching when substitute Joe Groves Forbes’ shot from distance wasn’t too far from the top corner on 82 minutes. Five minutes later & Skivington’s ambitious 30 yard shot at least got Roberts’ kit dirty as the stopper had to dive down to block the shot though in fairness it was a routine save. Tom Atkinson almost had the last say in the game, his stoppage time short range shot deflected on to the post by Glenn Caygill’s block but despite a late rally from Albion following the substitutions, they were second best throughout and produced an uncharacteristically punch-less performance, though will be facing easier opponents than this in the run in to the end of the season.
FT YARM & EAGLESCLIFFE 3 RACA 0 Attendance 64
RACA- Colquhoun, Skivington, Oldfield, Lynch (Fletcher 72), Caygill, Errington (s/o), Dart (Lawson 83), Page, Calvert (Todd 69), Baxter (Ledger 63), Hayton (Groves-Forbes 69)