No doubt with one eye on ‘The Counties’ next season, Darwen have undergone a bit of a makeover with a change in their management team and the introduction of a smattering of new players, and last week’s excellent away win at high flying Wren Rovers would have given them every reason to be optimistic going into this fixture against a Villa side currently lying too close for comfort towards the wrong end of the table. However, the Euxton side, having been recently boosted by the return from injury of first choice keeper Ross Baxter, had reasons of their own to be in positive mood, and on the day produced their most disciplined performance of the season so far, which never allowed their opponents to get a foothold in the game, and in the end ran out fairly comfortable winners.

Villa exploded out of the blocks and caught their opponents cold with a superbly taken goal inside three minutes. Sam Bolton fed Elliot Dunn, who, from the edge of the box, executed a perfectly weighted volley, which looped over the advancing keeper who found himself stranded in no-man’s-land.

The visitors continued to dictate the direction of play for most of the half. Gavin Cooper had the travelling fans on their feet with a fierce shot on the run which lifted just over, and Cooper later stung the palms of the keeper who could only parry his twenty yard stinger, and Danial Hogg’s pace enabled him to be first to the loose ball, but the angle was too tight and he found only the side netting.  Ten minutes from the interval, Hogg broke away and did well to keep his feet and get a shot off, but a push in the back had upset his equilibrium and the effort flew just too high.  

Hogg got his reward for another outstanding display of hard work for the cause as the half time whistle drew nigh. Dunn slid the ball in behind, and again the defence were undone by Hogg’s pace, and he calmly slid the ball under the advancing keeper.

Shortly after the restart, Ross Dickinson had a header cleared off the line from a Dave Warburton corner with the keeper beaten.  Then, shortly before the hour mark, Darwen had their best chance of the afternoon. A free kick from the edge of the box ricocheted off the wall, and in the resultant scramble, the ball fell to a Darwen player, who poked it into the empty net, but clearly from an off-side position.  Baxter took the resultant free quickly, and sent Hogg away again, and the home keeper had to get down well to claw one handed off the line from the breakaway. .

There were few clear-cut chances for either side during the remainder of the match. Playing with renewed confidence, the back four of Adam McAlister, Darren Davies, Ross Dickinson, and Sam Bolton snuffed out everything that came their way, ably supported by the outstanding Matt Plano protecting in front.  At the other end, Danial Hogg again ran himself to a standstill and Gavin Cooper had probably his finest game in a Villa shirt pulling the strings in midfield.

A great team performance all round, and every reason to believe that a run can now be put together which will result in steady progress up the table.

Villa line-Up: Ross Baxter, Adam McAlister, Darren Davies, Ross Dickinson, Sam Bolton, Matt Plano, Ryan Lilley, Elliot Dunn (Matt Conway 68) Gavin Cooper, Dave Warburton (Mark Swift 89) Danial Hogg (Tom Whittaker76)