Mossley 1 - 1 Skelmersdale United

Hold onto your hats because time dictates that this is going to be a quick blast through of what happened in Mossley's last game using Hurst Cross as a home base.

There may be spelling mistakes, there may be grammatical errors, it's likely to be rubbish but at least it's not going to eat into your time like these reports usually do. So buckle in, deep breath and...

Whether it was tiredness or just being wary of a side who'd put five past them five days earlier, Mossley began the match in a cautious manner. It was a decision which allowed Skelmersdale to see plenty of the ball but not the goal as some strong defending from the forward line back meant that chances where like the supporters on the terraces - few and far between.

Up until the 40th minute it looked like a spectacularly awful attempt at trying to win a penalty by United's Birch would be the highlight of the opening period. However, with what can only be described as a jammy, flukey, mis-hit of a shot (though it could have been a cross or an attempt to control the ball given the peculiar shape he was pulling), Michael White ensured that the visitors would head into the interval with the lead after scuffing the ball into the net.

As the second half progressed Mossley started to grow more and more adventurous and thanks to Skelmersdale's Curzon Ashton impression (all blue kit - all long hoofs up the pitch) they began to enjoy a lot more possession. Chances weren't exactly coming thick but and fast but they were keeping the Skem players busy in their own penalty area.

There have been many times in Mossley's past when they've paid the price for not making the most of moments in a game when they're on top. Thankfully though this wasn't an occasion to be added to that list. A fantastically long goal mouth scramble (it was like the Can-Can with all the legs that were swinging away) came to an end with the ball being knocked out of play by one of the visitors. From the resulting corner Mike Fish supplied a superbly weighted cross onto the head of Andy Russell and a split-second later the ball was in the back of the net and the Lilywhites were on level terms.

Skelmersdale could - and indeed, should - have won the game in injury time. Phil Mooney found himself unmarked in the six yard box as his side countered a Mossley attack but he inexplicably headed the ball wide when doing just that seemed the most impossible thing to do.

It was a miss that kept the scores level though and neither side will argue that a point each wasn't the fairest outcome. And a point is effectively all Mossley need against Rossendale to finish the season in seventh place - a position which three months ago looked as unlikely as the General Election being a three horse race.

So farewell Hurst Cross. Thanks for the help and the memories and should our paths ever have to cross again, lets hope the circumstances for them doing so are better ones.

And... done!

Relax, breathe out and on to the last one!