Wanderers threw away their unbeaten league record with a dismal performance against a spirited Cricket Club team.

For the second successive game Wanderers fell behind to an early penalty, after Andy Corless committed a foul.  Allan Mellor guessed correctly, but the ball was hit powerfully into the corner of the net.

The Blues were struggling to pass the ball, as the whole team seemed to lack sharpness.  Up front, Tom Soane was given a difficult task with little in the way of service.

Midway through the half, the inevitable happened and Wanderers fell further behind.  The Blues were unusually slow to close down the Cricket Club midfielder, who fired a shot away from Mellor and into the corner.

The goal served to wake Wanderers up a little, and Soane, Paul Martin and Ian Griffiths caused problems in the final third, though there was no end product.

Five minutes before half-time and the Blues came within a whisker of pulling a goal back.  A back-pass to the Cricket Club 'keeper saw the ball cleared along the ground into the middle, where Anthony Prior hit a fierce first-time shot from thirty yards.  The ball seemed to be heading for the top-corner of the net, but instead struck the top of the post and bounced to safety.

At half-time Wanderers introduced Scott Ford in place of Lewis Trusty. Paul Martin moved into attack and Prior onto the left wing.

Wanderers enjoyed a good start to the second period and piled the pressure on the Cricket Club goal.  Within five minutes, they had a goal to celebrate, as Prior's corner curled directly into the net.

This should have triggered a Blues' fightback but instead Cricket Club were allowed to control the game.  Paul Martin suffered an injury, and Jamie Ryall came on to replace him.  Clint Falcus then entered the field to replace Tom Mansfield.

The fresh faces did little to improve Wanderers' fortunes, and two goals in four minutes rocked the Blues.

With twenty minutes still remaining, Wanderers hoped to salvage something from the game and adopted a 3-4-3 formation in the closing stages.  Tom Soane looked to have reduced the deficit when his shot bounced over the line via the crossbar.  The hapless referee ruled that it wasn't a goal, and so Wanderers remained three goals behind.

Soane did score with five minutes remaining, lashing an angled shot into the corner of the net.  The goal was merely one of consolation, as Wanderers could not add to their tally.

It is hoped now that this defeat can be looked back upon as a much needed wake-up call for the Blues.  Performances of late have been below par, but games have still been won.  As the stakes have been raised, so must the effort and quality.

TEAM: Allan Mellor, Chris Hillsdon, Andy Corless, Dan van der Laan O'Donnell, Chris Orbell, Ian Griffiths, Tom Mansfield, Anthony Prior, Paul Martin, Lewis Trusty, Tom Soane.

SUBS: Scott Ford (for Trusty), Jamie Ryall (for Martin) and Clint Falcus (for Mansfield).