Hednesford finally laid to bed their North Ferriby hoodoo this afternoon, as the Pitmen beat their Humberside opponents for the first time in seven attempts to keep in touch at the top of the Evo-Stik Premier League table this evening

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Marvin Robinson, who this week rejected the advances of local rivals Chasetown to remain at Keys Park, was rewarded for his commitment to the Pitmen with a starting berth alongside Gary Hay. Elliott Durrell's cracked rib ruled him out of the game, with Jamey Osborne stepping back into the team. Teenager Jelani Benjamin-McFarlane returned to the substitute's bench after scoring again for the youth team in the F.A. Youth Cup in midweek

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Managerless Ferriby made the stronger start to the game, as the Pitmen's defence was made to work hard in the early stages. Two early free kicks were headed away by Cheyenne Dunkley, whilst Chris Shaw was sharp to block a Gary Bradshaw effort on the edge of the box

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Gradually, the Pitmen started to take control of the game, particularly in midfield, where Chris Clements and Jay Denny were both prominent in the first quarter. A clever through ball from Clements on eleven minutes found Robinson, who out-muscled Mark Greaves but fired wide with a bobbled shot

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Robinson went agonisingly close to opening the scoring on sixteen minutes, as he beat veteran Ferriby keeper Steve Wilson to the ball, but his firmly hit shot cannoned back off the foot of the post and away from goal

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A typically dangerous Clements free kick on twenty minutes caused panic in the North Ferriby defence, with the ball bobbling invitingly for Gary Hay eight yards out. However, the ball would not drop for the burly striker, and Greaves managed to hack the ball away

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Osborne was on hand to deny Bradshaw a sniff at goal on twenty three minutes, clearing a loose ball in front of goal after Dunkley had failed to deal with a corner kick

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Ferriby's Sam Mulready fired horribly wide of goal two minutes later, as he picked up a ball from Wayne Brooksby eighteen yards out and got his effort all out of shape

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Robinson required lengthy treatment for a facial injury after he came off worst in a challenge with the aggressive Greaves, with the big man spending a good two minutes on the touchline being tended to

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On twenty-six minutes, Bradshaw reached a real landmark for Ferriby as the prolific striker opened the scoring with a real gem. Brooksby squared the ball to Bradshaw on the edge of the area, with the Ferriby number nine striking a delightful rising shot past Dan Crane; the goal was Bradshaw's 200th for the Villagers in 400 appearances

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Bradshaw could have doubled the lead three minutes later, but his weak header was easily fielded by Crane on his six-yard box

Clements continued to cause Ferriby problems with his quality delivery from set-pieces, and a swerving free-kick was partially blocked by the Ferriby wall on thirty-four minutes, only for the rebound to fall kindly for the midfielder - his follow-up shot missed the crossbar by inches

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Clements atoned for this three minutes later, as he brought the Pitmen level with a rare headed goal. Campion's corner was partially cleared, but Robinson found Campion again after rescuing the ball; his cross  from the left found Clements unmarked just six yards out, with the midfielder heading firmly home

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The Pitmen finished the half much the stronger, and Wilson was on hand to deny Robinson a certain goal on forty minutes, turning the striker's header away from goal with a fingertip save

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As the game headed into added time, the visitors stole into the lead for the first time in the game. Clements turned provider on this occasion, sending over an in-swinging corner that Shaw headed back across goal and into the corner of the net

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The Pitmen's second-half performance was similar in tone to previous games against Ashton and Redditch, as they looked to control the tempo of the game and catch the opposition on the attack as they protected their lead. An early break by Kyle Haynes - much improved in recent games - saw him surge past two players but send over a cross that missed all of the onrushing Hednesford players

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Another quality ball in from Clements on fifty-two minutes saw Wilson fumble his attempt to catch the ball, allowing Denny to steal in and try to take advantage. However, the referee deemed Denny's challenge to be illegal and pulled the Hednesford player up before he could get a shot in

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Robinson really should have put the Pitmen in clear air on the hour mark, as he headed Shaw's deep cross wide of goal when he should have at least tested Wilson at his left-hand post

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Ferriby's only chance of the half to this point came on sixty-four minutes when Mulready chased down Wilson's long kick and took advantage of Pedro Monteiro's slip to fire at goal, only to be denied by a very good save indeed by Crane, saving low down

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Hay, who had been quiet compared to his previous two encounters, forced Wilson into a smart save on sixty-nine minutes with a bludgeoned shot

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Bradshaw's cute effort on seventy-three minutes very nearly brought Ferriby level once again, but the striker's clever chip cleared Crane's head and the far post in the process

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Robinson's powerful front running had caused Ferriby problems all afternoon, and his withdrawal in favour of Nick Wellecomme with fifteen minutes remaining will have been seen a relief to the Ferriby defenders. Wellecomme merely continued this trend, as he added extra pace and commitment to the forward line

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Hay and Clements combined well o create an opening on seventy-nine minutes, with Hay going straight through the centre of the tiring Ferriby defence. However, his shot lacked power or direction and fired well wide of goal

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This was to be Hay's last involvement in the game, as he was replaced by Danny Quinn a minute later as Rob Smith looked to close the game out with fresh legs up front to chase the long balls down

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A frantic final ten minutes saw clear-cut chances at a premium, as both defences earned their wages. Crane was well-placed to deny Brooksby as he attempted an angled drive from the left-hand side. At the other end, Quinn wriggled his way through the Ferriby defence, only to be denied by a last-ditch challenge

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Dunkley, Monteiro and Shaw all made significant contributions in the final moments, clearing every one of the numerous Ferriby balls in. Wellecomme was also prominent in making a triple block to deny three shots on goal

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In the last minute of the three minutes added time, Wellecomme could have finished Ferriby off as he broke clear of the hosts' defence, only for Wilson to turn his low shot away

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Three well-earned points moves Smith's side back into to the top five in the league table, with the Pitmen returning to Keys Park on Tuesday night to face struggling Burscough and make it three wins on the bounce

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North Ferriby United: Wilson ©, Wright (Williams 82), Larvin, Peat, Denton ▆, Greaves, Harsley ▆, Fry, Mulready, Bradshaw ▆, Brooksby       Subs Unused: Stirland, Leonard, Wright, Moy

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Hednesford Town: Crane, Haynes, Shaw, Monteiro, Dunkley, Denny ▆, Osborne, Clements ▆, Robinson (Wellecomme 75), Hay ▆ (Quinn 81), Campion ©      Subs Unused: Gomes, Benjamin-McFarlane, Clarke

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