Bootle beat rivals City Of Liverpool 2-1 in Widnes, this is Bootle’s first victory over The Purps since August 2022.
By Brendan Doyle
The game got off to a rather cagey and cautious in the first ten minutes from both sides, but after that period Bootle gained momentum and found an opening after Courtney Duffus followed him a rebounded shot and hit the ball into the back of the net from close range.
Just three minutes later, Ben Hodkinson pounced on a defensive error from The Purps and successfully capitalised on it and doubled Bootle’s lead. However, City Of Liverpool responded relatively quick as Will Bell and Tony Thompson got into a tangle which found Michael Howard receiving the ball at his feet in front of an open goal and pulled one back for the hosts.
The game seemed to open up more after the three goals in five very explosive minutes, both side attacked each other’s final third but neither keeper was seriously tested. Although former Buck Arthur Lomax Jones brought down Ben Hodkinson after the latter received a long ball and Lomax Jones received just a yellow card although some felt it should’ve been a red and that the former Bootle full back got off lightly.
Minutes before the 45 minute mark, Andy Scarisbrick made a brilliant run taking the ball past two City Of Liverpool players and picked out Courtney Duffus with a lovely through pass which seen Duffus one on one with Nick Michalski but his effort was blazed over the bar. The Purps narrowly escaped heading into the tunnel 3-1 down.
The second half wasn’t as eventful as the first half but nonetheless just eight minutes in, Michael Howard attempted to grab his second of the game to put his side level with an effort outside the box but the ball only rolled wide of Tony Thompson’s goal.
As The Purps seemed to have a short spell of putting Bootle under pressure, Andy Owens played through from a fantastic ball by Xenon Bahula and Owens was one on one with Tony Thompson and got his shot away but the ball clipped the inside of the post. Owens will have surely been kicking himself over that one!
In the later stages of the game both sides desperately tried claw another goal in the game, the closest Bootle came was a header from a Sean Williams free kick which found the head of Tom Peterson but the ball only went wide of the goal and Nick Michalski was untroubled.
After six minutes of injury time added on the referee blew his whistle to finish the game which resulted in Bootle defeating City Of Liverpool for the first time in over two years. The 2-1 for Bootle lifted them up to 9th place and due to results elsewhere City Of Liverpool fell to bottom of the league.