MACCLESFIELD FC 5, LANCASTER CITY 2
Good times never seem so good Neil Diamond famously sang on Sweet Caroline, and that is certainly the case at Macclesfield FC.
The Silkmen’s emphatic win against Lancaster City at the Leasing.com Stadium moved Robbie Savage’s side a huge 13 points clear at the top of Pitching In Northern Premier League, Premier.
Thirteen wins and two draws from 15 league matches has seen Macclesfield FC move streets ahead of the rest after an almost blemish free start to the campaign.
“It could have been 45 points as we ought to have won the two games we drew,” explained Savage whose side made it 10 straight league wins.
“It has been an amazing start, but leagues are not won in November, and we have to remain humble.”
It is easy to see why Savage this week turned down a lucrative offer – his words – to remain with this special group to finish the job he has started so well in his debut campaign in management.
“The mentality of this group is such, whether the 11 on the pitch or those on the bench, that we are all in it together and there is great camaraderie,” he said.
“It has been a big week for me in terms of decisions I have had to make, but I cannot leave that group of players, the fans, the board members and the sponsors who have put faith in us to build that squad.
“I am humble to lead them and this is the best thing I have probably done in my life to be head coach of this group.
“Playing was unbelievable and to reach the top which I never thought I would but to do that with this group at a club I am hugely invested in with my partner and to look at how happy it makes him because he put his money where his mouth is.
“And for me to repay him with that group is brilliant, but we have won nothing yet.”
It has been a week to remember – seven goals against Ashton United in the Isuzu FA Trophy, three in the midweek win at Matlock Town and a further five against Lancaster City with Savage saying they created enough chances to reach double figures.
“We are disappointed not to have score a lot more the way we attack,” said Savage.
That’s 58 goals in all competitions by the start of November as Savage has set his sights on 100 goals for the season.
“I have brought in goals and, if we score 100 goals [they have 34 in the NPL], we will possibly win the league,” he continued.
“We will always score goals but, if we go up, we won’t be able to be as open. At the moment, it is a case of scoring more than the opposition.”
Danny Elliott is in a rich seam of form – his brace against Lancaster took his season to 15 already. He has also found the net for nine games in a row – some record for the striker who struggled to find his scoring groove when arriving at the club.
Yet Lancaster, who completed a league double over the Silkmen last season, were no pushovers, despite the one-sided scoreline.
They snatched a fourth minute lead through Dylan Thompson’s header and asked plenty of questions of Macc, especially in the opening period.
Macc equalised through an 18th minute penalty from Elliott – it was a soft one as Samuel Bailey tripped Elliott with contact appearing minimal.
And there was no better time to take the lead than shortly before half time when Justin Johnson latched on to a through ball to slot a low shot past keeper Andre Mendes.
Soon after the restart, Elliott was put clean through only to see his shot deflected for a corner off the legs of Mendes.
It was a temporary reprieve as Elliott made it 3-1 in the 48th minute as Luke Duffy fired over a cross from the right to the far post for the hotshot to score from aa couple of yards.
Three became four before the hour when James Edmondson latched on to a through ball and rounded Mendes to net from the tightest of angles, some finish.
Elliott was denied his hat-trick in the 80th minute by the legs of the keeper as he, too, was clean through. He really should have had four goals as Savage later pointed out.
Macc’s fifth and final goal was arguably the best. A corner was cleared to the edge of the box where substitute Danny Whitehead found the net with a screamer. What a way to get off the mark for the season.