Blues Match Report: Merthyr Town 1 - 2 Chester FC

Goals from Fin Shrimpton and Dylan Mottley-Henry grabbed all three points against Merthyr Town in torrid conditions at Penydarren Park.

Shrimpton continued his outstanding recent form and bagged his seventh goal in eight games before the five-minute mark.

A fantastic Nathan Woodthorpe cross found our number 14 at the back post and he slotted a composed finish past Jaimie Cogman and into the bottom corner.

The hosts hit back with a number of opportunities shortly after, the first of which saw the ball crash back off the post from a Cawley Cox shot, before Bobby Jones pulled off an impressive save to deny Lee Lucas from an acute angle.

Paul Michael’s side did find an equaliser in the 11th minute, as captain Matthew Harris slammed past Jones from close-range.

The remainder of the half went without major incident, with the best opportunity falling to the hosts as Woodthorpe flew out to block inside the six-yard box.

Lewis Leigh was influential throughout in South Wales and linked up well with Dylan Mottley-Henry early in the second period, but the ball rolled out of reach of the former inside the home box.

Our number 16 also created the next chance as he broke quickly from his own half and reached the edge of the home box, only for his effort to find the outstretched arms of Cogman in the Merthyr goal.

Woodthorpe created an opportunity for himself with 10 minutes remaining, as he drove powerfully past multiple home defenders before his powerful strike was pushed away by the shot-stopper.

It looked be heading towards a share of the points until the 97th minute, when Dylan Mottley-Henry rose inside the box and tucked a downward header into the bottom corner after a well-directed Woodthorpe cross.

The result made it three wins on the spin for the Seals, who are on the road again on Saturday for a clash with Kidderminster Harriers.

Chester FC: Jones, Woodthorpe, Weeks, Leak, T. Davies, Murray, Mottley-Henry, Shrimpton, Leigh (S. Burgess 75′), Carson, F. Roberts (Rosenblatt 81′).

Substitutes: B. Davies, Croker, I. Burgess, Corbett, White

Scorers: Shrimpton 5′, Harris 11′, Mottley-Henry 90+7′

Attendance: 1,104

You can watch the post-match interview here...