Bootle Defeat Clitheroe With A Jack McGowan Brace

By Brendan Doyle

A 2-0 win away to Clitheroe sees Bootle’s play off hopes still alive as results elsewhere in the league swung in our favour.

Clitheroe got off to a very fast start as Danny Wilkins had a shot from outside the box which Tony Thompson parried away, but it was falling to Sekouba Sonogo for a rebound but his effort was skied over the bar. Minutes later Bootle went up the other end and had a chance of their own and Ben Hodkinson cut inside on his left foot and had a shot on goal but the shot was blocked off the line by defender Baba Fernandes.

As the half went on and proving to be a competitive game, Clitheroe midfielder Danny Wilkins was shown a straight red card after alleged serious foul play on Bootle’s Jack McGowan, much to the disagreement of the home players and fans but it was an early shower for Wilkins. Just before the forty five minute mark, Courtney Duffus played in Jack McGowan with a great flicked pass which seen Jack McGowan put his first time effort past Zac Hadi.

Bootke made a rapid start to the second half and very nearly got in front early on as Lewis Earl met a cross with a headed effort but his header clipped the top of the crossbar and went out for a goal kick, not long after however, Bootle did indeed double their tally as Jack McGowan was played in and one on one with Zac Hadi and stuck his effort home to make it 2-0 to Bootle.

As Bootle seemed to be cruising a 2-0 lad in the closing stages of the game, Clitheroe right back Jordan Windass managed to get a shot away just inside the Bootle area which looked threatening but it smashed onto the outside of the near post, it just wasn’t Clitheroe’s day to pull a goal back. The match ended 2-0 which sees Bootle go three undefeated and picking up seven points out of a possible nine and also four points a drift from play offs which means reaching the play off area is still mathematically possible.