Albion Sports 2 Brighouse 5

Brighouse Town ran out comfortable winners at Albion Sports in the Northern Counties East Premier Division derby.

There was early promise from the home side and they opened the scoring but some woeful defending ruined their afternoon.

Town were clinical as they took their chances to pick up a deserved three points.

Town boss Paul Quinn said: “I was pleased with the way we came back from Wednesday’s defeat. To come here and play like we did was the response I was looking for.”

It was the home side who came out of the blocks the quickest. Visiting skipper Leon Henry’s second-minute foul on Lee Elam led to a free-kick from which Danny Facey had a strong penalty appeal turned down, following another Henry challenge.

Albion were aggrieved but they soon broke the deadlock. Just five minutes had passed when Town keeper Jacob Giles could only parry Alex Cusack’s shot and Elam lashed the rebound in to open the scoring.

However, Albion were in front for barely two minutes. Town replied with a similar goal as home keeper Aaron Brian could not hold onto a Danny Nadiole shot and Tom Matthews pounced to slot the loose ball in.

Town began to take control and Albion lost Cusack to injury midway through the first half.

Ryan Hall fired Town in front with a good finish after beating Danny Brown to the ball before Nadiole slotted in after finding himself unmarked in the area and Luke Gibson drove in a thumping shot to make it 4-1 on the stroke of half-time.

Things went from bad to worse after the interval when Brown failed to cut out a low cross and Matthews tucked the ball in at the far post.

Brian denied Gibson and Town sub Joe Mitchell with good saves before Albion’s final substitute, Charlie Flaherty, sparked the home side into life.

They finished strongly with Elam, Malachi Farquharson, skipper Asif Hussain and Facey all testing Giles. But it was Flaherty himself who struck the late consolation, drilling in from the edge of the area after his corner had only been half cleared.

Albion manager Kulwinder Sandhu said: “I don’t know if we were better in the second half or if Brighouse took their foot off the gas a little. The best team won and there is no doubt about that.

“We gifted them too many chances and the last thing you want is to be doing that to a team as good as them.”