Lancaster City 2-3 Bamber Bridge

Brad Carsley heads on as Lancaster City attack. Picture: Tony North

The Dolly Blues had led 2-1 thanks to goals from Brad Carsley and Paul Dawson, but the visitors scored twice in the last five minutes to deny City.

It was a very even affair early on, but when Brig captain Matt Lawlor suffered an injury and was replaced by Matt Thompson after just 15 minutes, City started to take control.

However, it was Brig who created the first real chances of the game, first Richie Allen had a shot blocked and a Matt Dudley header was then comfortably saved by City keeper Sam Ashton.

The Dolly Blues took the lead in the 24th minute though when a superb cross from the right was headed home by Carsley at the far post.

Brig responded well to going a goal down and equalised in the 40th minute when Sheldon Green beat Ben Hudson and laid the ball across the six yard box, despite an attempted clearance it fell to Richie Allen who fired the ball into the net as the two sides went into half time all square.

Rowan Roache came close to putting the visitors ahead early in the second half when Ashton punched the ball clear but the Brig man’s volley flew inches wide of the post.

It was the Dolly Blues who retook the lead though when they were awarded a freekick on the edge of the Bamber Bridge penalty area, up stepped Paul Dawson to rifle it home into the right hand corner and give City a 2-1 advantage.

Brig then began to pressure City and Matt Dudley came close to equalising but his header from an Allen cross just went wide as the Dollies started to defend deeper and deeper.

The visitors evened things up with five minutes to go when Chris Marlow chipped in an excellent cross from the byline after some excellent work down the left-hand side. His cross was punched by City keeper Ashton but it fell to Thompson at the back post, who smashed the ball home from six yards.

The visitors weren’t done there though and went looking for the winner, and three minutes into injury time Marlow burst forward into the box and was brought  down.

The referee pointed to the spot and up stepped Roache, he sent keeper Ashton the wrong way to score a late and dramatic winner for Bamber Bridge.