A brace from Levi Collins handed Newcastle Blue Star their first defeat of the Northern League season, in a 2-0 win for Boldon CA.
Three points is all that separated the two sides heading into the fixture, with Blue Star lying third in the league and Boldon just two places behind them in fifth.
Both sides were largely unchanged following their last fixtures, with Blue Star fresh from a 2-2 draw with promotion rivals Chester-le-Street Town – while Boldon lost 2-1 to Ryton on Wednesday night.
Two changes for the hosts saw Curtis Coppen and Joe Walker drop to the bench, replaced by McFarlane and Walsh – Boldon meanwhile were unchanged from midweek.
With not much separating the two sides in terms of league position, it was no surprise that the game was very tight early on.
Boldon though would be the ones to strike first, taking the lead in the 12th minute – with Stephen Wilkinson’s cross finding Collins in the box, who slotted his effort into the bottom left corner.
Chances came few are far between for the rest of the half, with neither side creating any clear-cut opportunities. There would be a few half-chances for Blue Star though, with Dan Lanning firing a left-footed shot just past the post in the 25th minute and Alfie Livermore nearly rounding the Boldon keeper two minutes later.
Clearly unimpressed with his sides first-half performance, Blue Star boss Brian Smith reigned in the changes at half-time with Paul Robinson, Michael Richardson, and Coppen all coming on at the break.
The changes seemed to work as his side started the second half in much better fashion – with Lee Mason nearly levelling the score eight minutes after the restart, firing a long-range shot destined for the top corner only to see it fantastically saved by the Boldon keeper.
As the half wore on Blue Star grew more and more dominant, controlling the majority of possession. Boldon however remained dangerous on the break, with their front three causing problems for the Blue Star backline all afternoon.
That front three would eventually link up for Boldon’s second goal – when some smart link-up play resulted in Dario Dos Santos being brought down in the box and winning his side a penalty in the 67th minute.
Collins stepped up to the spot and calmly slotted his penalty into the bottom corner.
In an urgent need of a reply, Walker nearly got a goal back for Blue Star in the 84th minute – drawing yet another impressive save out of George Biggs in the Boldon net.
Ultimately though Blue Star would fail to reply with a goal – meaning Boldon would leave Scotswood with a 2-0 victory and well-deserved three points.
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