MATCH REPORT: ILKESTON TOWN (H)

18 Feb 2024

Share:

John Rooney scored a hat trick to secure all three points for Alex Bruce’s side.

Rooney’s goal in the 88th minute cemented the victory when he turned quickly and hit the ball into the bottom left corner.

The 33-year-old scored his first just before halftime after he received the ball from Bohan Dixon and calmly slotted it beyond the keepers reach.

He scored the other from the penalty spot in the 77th minute after Sam Heathcote was brought down in the box.

Rooney smashed the ball down the middle sending Matt Yates the wrong way.

Tunde Owolabi caused chaos upfront scoring two with his first coming as the opener in the sixth minute when he charged into the box and struck the ball into the right side of the net.

The forward scored his second in the 85th minute to put the Silkmen in front by dribbling around the goalkeeper and putting the ball into an empty goal.

Tom Cursons scored in the 8th minute to equalise early in the first half when he received the ball from a corner and poked the ball into the goal.

Declan Eratt-Thompson sent a cross from the left to Jonathan Wafula who scored to put the away side ahead in the 19th minute.

Thomas Marshall put away an incredible free kick from far out in the 54th minute which went way beyond Dylan Berry’s reach.

Owolabi had two goals ruled out in the opening ten minutes for offside which added to the intense atmosphere throughout the game.

Yates was forced into action with an unbelievable double save after Lewis Fensome’s header was pushed away and fell to Owolabi who was denied inside the six-yard box.

Heathcote came close to grabbing a goal when Kane Drummond shot wide, but he was unable to tap it into the net at full stretch.

Owolabi also hit the post from close range and had an effort cleared off the line by Marshall.

This result moves Macclesfield into fifth with two games in hand over fourth placed Marine.

By Samual Gooch

Featured in this article:

LatestNews

MATCH PREVIEW: COLNE FC VS MACCLESFIELD FC XI

MATCH PREVIEW: COLNE FC VS MACCLESFIELD FC XI

A trial Silkmen XI are back in action tomorrow afternoon with a second public pre-season outing against Colne FC. A youthful Macc side will this week be led from the sidelines by a combination of Academy Manager Lewis Craig, Head of Academy Recruitment Nick Simpson...

read more
RACE NIGHT TONIGHT IN BAR TWENTY SEVEN

RACE NIGHT TONIGHT IN BAR TWENTY SEVEN

Tonight is the first ever Race Night in Bar Twenty Seven! The evening is anticipated to be a thoroughly enjoyable one, gathering with friends, family and fellow Silkmen supporters in a competitive, but relaxed environment to see who comes out on top from a series of...

read more
BUCKLEY-RICKETTS TO DEPART AT THE END OF CONTRACT

BUCKLEY-RICKETTS TO DEPART AT THE END OF CONTRACT

Macclesfield FC can confirm that winger Isaac Buckley-Ricketts will depart the Leasing.com Stadium following the expiration of his contract.  The 28-year-old made 55 appearances in all competitions last season, scoring on nine occasions, most famously against Crystal...

read more
SILKMEN FAN CAM: MARCH

SILKMEN FAN CAM: MARCH

March was another step towards achieving our eventual goal, reaching 3rd place by the end of the month after a mammoth eight fixtures, helped by the backing of our Silkmen faithful as ever! There were unbelievable turnouts throughout the month, with over 3,500 at the...

read more
LIVE SPORT IN BAR TWENTY SEVEN

LIVE SPORT IN BAR TWENTY SEVEN

Catch another huge weekend of sport, live in Bar Twenty Seven! There’s action from the World Cup, Betfred Super League, ICC World Test Championship, Women's T20 World Cup, Formula One World Championship and the PGA Tour! We're two weeks in to the 2026 World Cup with a...

read more
PRE-SEASON FIXTURE NEWS: TAMWORTH FC VS MACCLESFIELD FC

PRE-SEASON FIXTURE NEWS: TAMWORTH FC VS MACCLESFIELD FC

The Silkmen have extended their pre-season campaign to include an additional fixture away at Tamworth on Tuesday 28th July, kicking off at 7:45pm. With games of a non-competitive nature against Hyde United, Leek Town, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Warrington Town,...

read more