The Silkmen’s Isuzu FA Trophy run came to an end as they fell to a narrow 2-1 defeat at the hands of Woking at a sodden Laithwaite Community Stadium on Tuesday evening.
John Rooney made eight changes to the side that beat Oxford City convincingly on Saturday afternoon at the Leasing.com Stadium. Lewis Fensome, Regan Griffiths, Carlos Dos Santos, Danny Whitehead and Max Woltman all returned to the starting XI, whilst Mikey Stone and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson both made their first starts for the Silkmen.
Danny Whitehead was first to test Woking keeper Craig Ross in familiar surroundings after his winner on the same soil back in 2018, delivering a dangerous cross which Ross did well to claim.
It was at the opposite end though that the scoring was opened as following a smooth attacking move from the hosts, the ball was laid off nicely for the awaiting Olly Sanderson on the edge of the area, who slotted beyond Dearnley to put the Cardinals in front.
Eager to double their lead, Rollin Menayese was well placed to deny Jack Turner from doing so, before doing just enough to put the same man off when challenging to meet an inswinging Woking corner, as he glanced just over Dearnley’s crossbar.
A half chance fell to James Edmondson on the edge of the area from another set piece at the other end, though could only slice over on the half-volley.
With the Silkmen clearly in for a physical battle throughout the evening, a couple of stoppages ensued in quick succession whilst Edmondson and Borthwick-Jackson both received treatment for knocks, each of whom were fortunately ok to continue.
The best Macc chance of the first half fell to Max Woltman, who broke free of the Woking back line before bearing down on goal but was denied by Ross, who won the psychological battle when faced with Max one-on-one.
Despite the Silkmen enjoying their fair share of chances, it was Sanderson who notched once more to double his and Woking’s tally for the evening after Macc failed to clear the lines for a second time before the break.
Two minutes were added before the sides went in to the break two goals apart, leaving the Silkmen with work to do in order to get back in to the Trophy tie.
D’Mani Mellor was introduced at the interval in place of James Edmondson as Macc looked to turn the game on its head in the remaining 45 minutes.
Mellor almost made an immediate impact, getting in behind the Woking defence early in to the second period before firing low and hard in to the side netting at Ross’ near post, immediately ringing alarm bells for the home side of the number 9’s now meaningful presence.
Two changes were made on the hour mark as the rain quickly turned torrential and the pitch fast becoming a mud bath. Isaac Buckley-Ricketts and Luke Duffy were the reinforcements, taking the places of Danny Whitehead and Luke Matheson as a clear display of attacking intent for the remainder of the affair.
Substitutes Mellor and Duffy combined soon after the latter’s introduction, but as Duffy squared for Dos Santos to finish the move, the effects of the weather on the pitch played its part as the ball near enough stopped still, allowing Woking to clear from the danger zone.
Buckley-Ricketts also made his presence felt going forward from the left flank as his deflected effort then wrong-footed Ross, who recovered well to prevent the ball from squirming over the line at the near post.
Max Woltman was next to try and capitalise on a now back-pedalling Woking side as Ross failed to clear his lines appropriately, allowing Woltman a first-time opportunity from range to try and lob the stranded number one, but his floated effort didn’t quick dip in time to find the back of the net.
With tempers beginning to flare, Lewis Fensome found himself entangled in a tussle with Tariq Hinds, both of whom were booked for their troubles before one final change was made by John Rooney as Sam Heathcote replaced Max Woltman, taking up his familiar position as an additional front man, posing an arial presence for the closing stages.
It was Macc’s natural number nine who managed to halve the deficit with just over ten minutes to play, firing low and hard under Ross to give the Silkmen a glimmer of hope as they raced back to the half way line before immediately going back in search of a leveller.
Within two minutes, Macc had earned themselves the opportunity to equalise as Luke Duffy was tripped inside the area, and D’Mani Mellor handed the honours to try and double his and Macc’s tally with nine minutes left on the clock, but his spot kick was well saved by Ross, low to his left.
Far from giving up, the Silkmen onslaught continued in the dying stages, as appeals for another penalty were waved away as Luke Duffy appeared to be fouled once again inside the 18 yard box, but wasn’t awarded with the same outcome as previously.
Max Dearnley joined those in blue up at the top end for the four additional minutes of time for three corners in quick succession, though Woking survived despite a heroic effort from Macc to remain in the competition in nothing short of horrific conditions before the final whistle.
147 loyal Silkmen supporters were shown the recognition they deserved after a brief tussle between the two sides immediately after proceedings were brought to an end, as a Macc side, defeated on the scoreline but not in character headed to the away end to wish their die hard fans a safe journey home and thanked them for attending.
Macc now remain competitive in the Enterprise National League North and the Emirates FA Cup with a trip to Worksop in the league next up on Saturday afternoon. Tickets remain available via Worksop’s website.
MOTM: Olly Sanderson
Attendance: 1,144
