Heys well beaten at Lower Breck

Scott White reports

Within sound of a packed Anfield, Heys slipped to defeat on their first ever trip to Lower Breck on the first Saturday of the season with the snap of the coming winter in the air.

In cold and blustery conditions, Lower Breck settled better on the artificial surface, and were in the driving seat for the bulk of the first half, but only had a single goal advantage at the break, which gave Heys hope that they could glean some return from the afternoon.

Mike Smith was called upon on a few occasions to collect efforts from a lively Lower Breck attack, but for all the home side’s domination, clear-cut chances were few and far between.

They missed a gilt-edged chance on sixteen minutes when a nice cut back was side footed wide of goal and then James Henders headed wide when he really should have hit the target.

Heys laboured to make things happen in the home half, but Lee Grimshaw did get his head on a Max White cross midway through the half, but this was to prove a temporary respite as Lower Breck took the lead on twenty-eight minutes, a pacy run down Heys’ left flank ended with a low cross finding Mason Nevitt, who finished well.

Rio Wilson-Heyes got a shot in soon after the restart as Heys responded positively, but Breck went closest to scoring when full-back Tom Kinsella rifled in a powerful effort.

A couple of half chances fell Heys’ way before the half-time whistle, but it was forty-five minutes where Prestwich struggled to assert themselves as the home side dominated the midfield battle.

The second half saw Heys up their game and begin to get things moving, and they were unlucky on fifty-one minutes when the referee blew for a Heys free-kick when the ball had run kindly and playing the advantage could have been the platform for an attack.

Just as events looked to be improving, disaster struck as Nevitt swept home his second of the afternoon and leave Heys with a mountain to climb.

Danny Vincent replaced Danny Warburton, and Max White, who had started the afternoon at full-back, moved into a more familiar berth in midfield.

The visitors then enjoyed a purple patch, White getting Lee Bruce in, but his effort went just wide, and minutes later, Heys could not get a shot onto a loose ball in the home penalty area with the Breck defence scrambling to keep their clean sheet.

Lee Bruce then almost managed to nick the ball off the toes of the home keeper before he was switched for Hensley Mills on seventy minutes.

The clock ticked away on Heys’ hopes for the goal that would open the game up, and as they committed more men forward, Breck began to threaten on the break.

On eighty-three minutes, Mike Smith flew out of the penalty area to challenge for a bouncing ball and caught Breck striker Steve Milne, the referee sensibly only showing a yellow to the Heys’ keeper as he adjudged there to have been no intent.

Right at the death, Lower Breck added a third when substitute Mike Darcy fired into the net after a neat attacking move to seal a deserved victory.

The blustery conditions meant that it was hard for both sides to pass the ball around with much success, but Lower Breck got an early grip in midfield and always had willing runners on both flanks to chase balls forward, Heys struggled to get a busy Jordan Icely, playing in the hole, into the game and it was here that the game was won and lost.

Heys have until Thursday to lick their wounds when they travel over to St Helens Town for a First Division North fixture.

Heys Line-up: Mike Smith, Max White, Carl Fitton, Danny Warburton, Mark Ayres, Jacob Holt, Jordan Icely, Jamie Baguley, Lee Bruce, Lee Grimshaw, Rio Wilson-Heyes. Substitutes: Danny Vincent (for Warburton), Hensley Mills (for Bruce, Chris Baguley, Callum Jakovlevs (both usused)