Mark Beesley: We need to be more ruthless

Warrington Town need to be more clinical in front of goal after being held to a 2-2 draw away at Morpeth Town, says boss Mark Beesley. 

The Yellows twice hit the front at Craik Park but were pegged back on both occasions, meaning they will meet again for the third time this season on Tuesday in an Emirates FA Cup first qualifying round replay. 

It also means that Tuesday’s Northern Premier League fixture against Warrington Rylands has been postponed to accommodate the cup fixture. A new date for the derby will be announced in due course.

“I think based on the first-half performance, it wouldn’t be a result we’d take,” Beesley said post-match. “We’ve played really well but we’ve missed too many chances that we need to be scoring. 

“We need to be more ruthless in the final third and start finishing these chances. 

“We’ve also given two poor goals away from our point of view, and they need to stop. 

“Teams aren’t having to work hard to score against us, whereas we’re having to work really hard to create chances. We need to start being ruthless in both boxes.”

Luke Duffy opened the scoring at Craik Park thanks to a superb solo effort, while Stefan Mols’ deflected effort found the back of the net either side of goals from Highwaymen duo Jack Foalle and Connor Thomson. 

Despite Saturday’s draw, Beesley is confident that his side can claim victory at Cantilever Park on Tuesday and progress to the next round of the cup. 

“They’re a good team and came back strong,” he added. “They put us under pressure without creating chance after chance. 

“I think we need to be a little bit sharper. We’re creating some good opportunities in and around the box, and I’d be more worried if we weren’t. 

“We just need to be technically better to finish them off.”

Photo credit: Sean Walsh