With both sides boasting the league’s top two strikers in Dean Perrow and Danny Burnell, it was the latter who took the honours on the day as Burnell’s close range strike in the 51st minute decided a forgettable promotion clash at the Meadow in front of a crowd boosted by two coach loads of Chasetown’s travelling Blue Army of fans writes Russell Brown.

With Danny Smith unavailable due to academic commitments, Perrow was paired up with Jermaine Gordon up front and with manager Charlie Blakemore naming two of his young hotshots from the reserves in Daniel Dubidat and James Welnischuk on the bench, it was an attacking line up for the game against the Generals’.

It had looked promising for the visitors as they took the game to their hosts and Richard Haywood made a tremendous save to deny March Branch from planting a free kick into the top corner.

Gordon missed a golden opportunity when the ball bounced into the path of the striker who missed his kick from six yards out.

United were fortunate to keep eleven men on the pitch before half time when a horror challenge from Kevin Cotton was rewarded with just a yellow card as the youngster flew in with studs showing on John Branch just before the interval. Cotton was withdrawn at half time to allow local favourite John Lawford to take to the field.

After all their first half dominance, Chasetown fell behind against the run of play, six minutes after the break when they failed to deal with a cross drilled in from the left by John Fotheringham. The ball skipped up to strike Andy Penny and Lee Evans reacted superbly to block the deflected ball, but there was nothing the keeper could do as Burnell was in the right place to smash in the rebound from two yards out.

That goal stunned the visitors and they never really got over the shock of going behind and the Scholars just could not raise their game. Despite the introduction of the two young striking prospects, United were never under any real threat from their weary visitors and a tepid second half performance played right into the Generals’ hands as they headed for a vital second league win over Chasetown.

Near the end, Burnell could have sealed the win as he was inches away from converting a close range header at the far post, but this untimely defeat now means that Chasetown’s season rests in the hands of others even if the Scholars achieve victory, ironically at the same venue on Saturday, as they meet up with ground sharing Aylesbury United for what could be their final game in an amazing season.

Chasetown: Evans, J Branch, M Branch, Miller, Penny, Williams, Steane (Walters), Woodvine (Welnitschuk), Gordon (Dubidat), Perrow, Hawkins

Other Subs: Aulton, Spittle (not used)