Alex Curran’s first goal of pre-season handed The Silkmen a share of the spoils in an entertaining contest against The New Saints on Saturday.
The game started with Macc dominating the early possession, yet it was the hosts who managed to carve out the first real chance of note in the third minute.
An unnamed Trialist B stormed through the Silkmen ranks and after bearing down on goal, saw his low effort well-saved by the feet of Max Dearnley.
After the early scare, Macc began to stamp an element of authority on proceedings and in were unlucky not to open the scoring in the eighth minute.
Luke Duffy innovatively headed the ball into the path of Kielen Adams, yet his rasping drive was well-saved by Jack Edwards at his near post.
As the game settled down, it became more and more apparent that Justin Johnson and Tom Jones would play a significant role in its eventual outcome.
Johnson was not in the least bit shy to use his electrifying pace on either flank and the same could also be said of Jones who looked The New Saints’ most potent threat.
Indeed, it was not unusual for Jones to cause Macc’s defence a whole host of problems from wide areas – yet in the main, they dealt with them admirably.
In the 20th minute, the Champions League side threatened once again when unnamed Trialist B fired a rasping drive goalwards which was bravely blocked by the advancing Lewis Fensome.
The ball rebounded perfectly into the path of Jones, who looked set to find the back of the net before new signing Scott Holding superbly deflected the ball to safety at the last second.
Two minutes later and it was the visitors who looked the most likely to make the breakthrough when Johnson surged down the left and saw his teasing cross glanced marginally wide by Luke Duffy.
At this point, Macc were undeniably building copious amounts of momentum within their play and this was exemplified when Johnson’s venomous effort from thirty-yards out was brilliantly tipped around the near post by Edwards.
For all Macc exhibited some threatening and entertaining passages of play at this point, it was the hosts who opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark.
Jones tenaciously created space on the left, before pulling the ball back to Ash Baker whose tantalising low drive into the area sliced through the Macc ranks before being calmly finished at the back post by another unnamed TNS trialist.
Things could well have got worse for Robbie Savage’s side in the 39th minute too – as Dan Williams spread the ball out to Jones on the right and after cutting inside, he could only direct his fizzing low drive wide of the near post.
As the interval approached, Macc began to reassert themselves and, in the 43rd minute, were desperately unlucky not to equalise when Duffy broke free down the left before teeing up Neil Kengni, who could only fire the ball straight at Edwards.
Second later, parity was restored however when a flowing Silkmen move saw Alex Curran clinically fire the ball across the face of goal and into the back of the net from twenty-yards out.
With one eye on their Champions League tie against Ferencváros on Tuesday evening, the home side made significant changes at the interval – yet the dynamics and tempo of the contest were left relatively unaffected.
The first chance of note after the restart came in the 49th minute when the energetic Trialist B cleverly chipped the ball into the area – yet Jake Canavan could only fire wide of the near post from an acute angle.
The pendulum then swung back in Macc’s favour as the visitors began to dominate proceedings once more.
In the 55th minute, Duffy’s ferocious shot from distance saw Edwards make a smart stop to his left – as he parried the ball away to relative safety.
Eight minutes later and Macc arguably created the move of the game with a blistering counter-attack which pierced through the heart of the TNS ranks.
The ball ultimately fell to Kengni, who burst into the penalty area before slicing his low effort inches wide of the near post.
Substitute ‘keeper Tom Scott then denied Trialist C after the latter had shown some nimble footwork to make room for the short, but it was the subsequent introduction of Tom Clare that unquestionably gave Macc another dimension in terms of their offensive threat in the latter stages of the game.
Keen to make an instant impact, Clare’s first involvement saw him force his way through the TNS defence in the 69th minute, before dragging a low drive just wide of the far post.
Less than sixty seconds later, it was the home side’s turn to threaten once again as Jones found space on the left before nonchalantly pulling the ball back for Canavan to fire across the face of goal and wide of the far upright.
Seemingly, neither side were content with letting the game fizzle out as a draw and in the 80th minute Adams burst down the right before executing a seductive ball across the six-yard line which agonisingly evaded the rapidly advancing Clare.
After what proved to be a mesmerising performance on so many levels, Jones’ final involvement in proceedings came in the 84th minute when another magical run ended with him flashing a ferocious drive across the face of goal and narrowly wide of Scott’s far post.
In what proved to be the last chance of the game, Macc created their own late moment of magic in the 89th minute however – Adams effortlessly showed his marker a clean pair of heels down the right before his cross was pristinely controlled by Clare and the subsequent audacious volley superbly saved by Edwards.
There can be no doubt that Saturday’s performance against the Welsh champions whetted all our appetites for what will follow, as we now look forward to entertaining Rochdale at the Leasing.com Stadium this coming Tuesday evening.
