Ravens Win on the Road

FC Isle of Man picked up their second win in a row this weekend as they beat Burscough 3-2 away in Ormskirk.

After a rather choppy sailing across the Irish Sea an own goal, along with strikes from Sean Doyle and Jack McVey were enough to secure the win.

The hosts started quickly and picked up a couple of early corners which were well cleared by the Ravens’s defence.

As the tide turned, the Ravens began to find their rhythm going forward and when Jack McVey’s cross was met by defender Mackenzie Stark who tried to head it over the bar, but instead placed it perfectly under the bar to give FC Isle of Man a 0-1 lead.

That goal lit a fire under the Ravens and that pressure showed when Frank Jones was fouled on the edge of the box.

The resulting free kick from Dean Pinnington hit wall, he won a header to flick it on to Jones, he teed up Tiernan Garvey who looked to steer it into the bottom corner, but his effort cannoned back off the post, cueing loud groans from the travelling Ravens fans.

Pinnginton should have made it 0-2 shortly after when Joe Walters played him through but when one-on-one with Charlie Monks he elected to chip the keeper, who gladly caught it with ease.

It wouldn’t take the Ravens too long to double their lead however as Garvey nipped in to take the ball off a Burscough midfielder and played in Sean Doyle who slotted past Monks to make it 0-2 with the away supporting bursting into a rendition of ‘Sean Doyle’s on Fire’.

The game could’ve been wrapped up by half-time if it wasn’t for Monks as a free kick was floated in, Mikey Williams flicked it on to Joe Walters at the back post, but his header was brilliantly stopped by Monks who scrambled across his goal to keep it 0-2 at the break.

The only downside for the Ravens from that first half came in the form of a late substitution as Pinnginton went off holding his side, being replaced by Ste Whitley.

Burscough came out firing in the second half and almost had a goal straight from kick off only for Al Maitland to get a block in.

However, the Ravens failed to heed that warning and their hosts drew one back when Tom Lawless got in down the right, he squared it to Will Riding who smashed it past Ben Wilkinson who had no chance to stop it.

Whitley almost restored the two goal lead moments later, but his effort was well stopped by Monks.

On the hour mark Williams was forced off with an injury with Joe Quayle coming on.

Burscough pushed the Ravens back into their half with Wilkinson, Jacob Crook, Maitland, McVey and Callum Sherry working well as a unit to keep them out.

The Ravens would get their third goal later in the second half as Sean Doyle was pulled down in the box when a free kick was lifted in with McVey slotting home the resulting penalty.

Never ones to make life easy for themselves, the Ravens reacted to that goal by conceding one themselves with Conor Forshaw scoring from the edge of the box as the clock struck 90 to make it 2-3.

Despite this, the Ravens held on to secure a second win in two weeks which takes them to within six points of the play-off spots with a game in hand.