No complaints from Rail boss as Bridlington take the spoils

The Starbeck outfit enjoyed a good spell towards the end of the first half and at the beginning of the second, but other than that they were largely second best to the visiting Seasiders.

“I’ve got no complaints, Brid deserved the points. We weren’t at the races in periods of the match,” Adams reflected.

“They created more chances than us in the second half and they executed. We had a couple ourselves in both halves, but this is what happens in football if you don’t take your opportunities, you get punished.

“That’s just how it is going for us at the moment. We are playing okay in games but not getting the results.

“Luck hasn’t been on our side, but if we keep plugging away then hopefully it should turn around.”

Railway struggled to get out of their own half during the opening exchanges, but they needlessly gifted Brid the lead with 10 minutes on the clock.

Joel Sutton got in behind the home defence and was met by advancing custodian Mark Bower. As the ball went loose, the visiting striker re-claimed possession but was running away from goal when Ras Diamond Jr rashly went through the back of him inside the box.

Jake Day, scorer of four goals when the sides met earlier in the season, made no mistake from the resulting penalty kick.

Railway responded well to falling behind and Shane Hamilton almost got in on goal, but gloveman Jody Barford got down to nick the ball off his toe.

Hamilton then forced Barford into a parry at his near post, before play switched back to the other end.

A free-kick was whipped in from the right flank and found its way through to a completely unmarked Day at the far post, but Bower reacted to well to keep out a first-time effort.

With the Rail defence all over the place, Day was afforded another clear sight of goal just two minutes later, but Bower came off his line to block well.

As the clock ticked past the half-hour mark, Adams’ began to see more of the ball and they drew level in the 38th minute.

Andy McHugh scuffed a shot goalwards from a central position, just inside the penalty area, and as Barford dived to save it, the ball hit a bobble, bounced over his prone figure and rolled into the back of the net.

Buoyed by their goal, the hosts ended the half very much on top and a lofted free-kick into the Brid box caused chaos. A game of head tennis ensued, skipper Ally Wilson eventually nodded goalwards, but the ball was hacked clear.

Railway went closer still to taking the lead when central midfielder Michael Thompson picked up the ball more than 30 yards from goal and sent an audacious long-ranger over the head of Barford and crashing into the crossbar.

The home side picked up where they left off after the break, and just minutes into the second period a deicisive moment in the game arrived.

Thompson curled a delicious 25-yard free-kick against the bar and with the goal at his mercy Hamilton smashed the rebound high over the top.

That was as good as it got for the Rail as the visitors slowly clawed their way back into the ascendancy.

After a decent spell of pressure, the ball was delivered into the home box from the right and Day rammed home his second of the afternoon just after the hour.

Seven minutes later and Brid were in full control, Sutton left with an easy finish after Bower couldn’t hold onto a free-kick and spilled the ball into the forward’s path.

Railway hardly threatened to get themselves back into the game, and indeed it was the East Yorkshiremen who looked the more likely to add to their tally, Day missing out on a hat-trick when he lashed a strike narrowly too high.

In the dying embers of the game, referee Mr Keightley ignored a series of niggly fouls on home substitute Fraser Lancaster, allowed play to go on and then proceeded to show Lee Turner a second yellow card as he dived in for a 50/50 with a Brid player, rounding off a disappointing afternoon for the men from Station View.

Looking back at Hamilton’s crucial miss at the start of the second half, boss Adams added: “This was the difference. This is what I mean about being clinical.

“Our goalkeeper spilled a free-kick and they tapped it in. Shane Hamilton should have finished his chance and it would have been 2-1 to us, but that’s how it’s going for us.”