Blackburn Hawks 1 Whitley Warriors 2

Mar 29 2010 The Journal

WHITLEY WARRIORS began their bid to add the ENL play-off title to their recent league success with a hard-fought victory at Blackburn.

The Hawks went into the game having lost just once in their last six matches, but found themselves in arrears at 15.09 when Adam Reynolds - the leading scorer in the English National League North during the regular season - put Whitley ahead.

However, the visitors found themselves on the back foot more during the middle session as Blackburn searched for an equaliser – and it was Aaron Davies who drew them level with just 63 seconds of the period remaining.

Whitley were indebted to netminder James Flavell for fine saves during the closing 20 minutes, but his hard work paid off with a little under five minutes left when Ryan Sample found the net to give the visitors a vital lead – and ultimately the win as they opened their title bid with two points.

WHITLEY SCORERS: Reynolds & Sample 1+0, Harris, Kippin & Murdy 0+1.