Last updated at 14:13, Monday, 10 January 2011

Spennymoor Town 2 Penrith 0: A depleted Penrith side crashed to defeat at second-placed Spennymoor on Saturday.

The Blues, who had to include manager James Tose and three 17-year-old reserve players in their matchday squad, made a solid start but fell behind on the half-hour mark, as Spennymoor capitalised on the referee’s failure to spot an elbow on defender Matty Brown in the lead-up to the goal.

Despite battling hard against a side who have been a major force in Northern League football for a number of seasons, Penrith conceded a second just three minutes from the end, when a Moors’ winger made the points safe with a cool finish.

Tose was pleased with his team’s efforts in the unfavourable circumstances.

He said: “I thought we deserved a draw. We defended brilliantly in the first half but it was always going to be a tough game.”

“It was difficult to take but I’m proud of the character and togetherness shown by the lads.”

First published at 11:39, Monday, 10 January 2011
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk