Penalties swing games for and against Blyth Spartans

They suffered the high of a 2-1 away win over Buxton on Saturday, when a late double from Alex Nicholson gave them victory.

But this was followed by the low of a 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Scarborough Athletic on Monday when the Yorkshire side, in front of over 1200 fans at Croft Park, stole the points with a controversial late penalty.

At Buxton the Peak District side opened the scoring after 41 minutes and led 1-0 at the break.

It looked as if the home side were going to take the points, but two goals from Nicholson in the 90th minute and in injury time, one of them from the penalty spot, gave Blyth a dramatic late win.

After the match manager Graham Fenton said: “It was a tough game. We haven’t played our best, but the resilience of the group is just magnificent and I’m delighted with the result.”

Against Scarborough, the visitors took a 31st minute lead, but early in the second half a goal from Lewis McNall got Spartans back on level terms.

The game looked to be heading for a draw, but in the 87th minute Scarborough were awarded a controversial penalty from which they scored the winner.

The penalty award was hotly disputed by the Spartans’ players, management and supporters, but the referee did not change his mind.

On Saturday (September 3), Blyth are back in National League action when they travel to take on Peterborough Sports.