Report by: Edward Robertson

GUISELEY'S 2022/23 season ended with disappointment as they were defeated 2-1 at Lancaster City despite taking the lead in the first half.

Manager Paul Phillips was frustrated that his side did not maintain standards of performance in a game that was effectively a ‘dead rubber’.

“It’s about standards,” the manager said after the match. “We have a lot of fair-weather players, who are brave when things are going well but not so much when they’re going wrong. We had five or six chances but we just couldn’t put them away. And in the end, they just had more know-how and more quality than us.”

The home side started the game quickly. A break down the right flank, and subsequent cross, found Charlie Bailey whose shot was saved well by Hagie Damba.

Guiseley’s first opportunity of the game came just two minutes later when Leigh Whelan flicked the ball to Ethan Kachosa. Kachosa’s pass ricocheted fortuitously to Callum Chippendale only for his looping effort to fly over the bar.

The Lions also came close to taking the lead five minutes later. Some neat interplay between Chippendale and Benni Smales-Braithwaite, who was back in the side following his three-match suspension, found Kachosa in the box. The Sunderland loanee’s shot was blocked though much to the visitors frustration.

Phillips charges continued to trouble City. Kallan Murphy won the ball well in the middle of the park and picked out Smales-Braithwaite who then made a dangerous run. The Barrow loanee produced a long range effort that went narrowly wide.

Guiseley got their just reward in the thirty-sixth minute as a long ball over the top was met by Kachosa. After some neat interplay between Kachosa and Chippendale, the young winger was through one on one with goalkeeper Sam Waller. Kachosa kept his cool and made no mistake with his finish, firing home emphatically to give the Lions a deserved lead.

The visitors headed into the halftime dressing room ahead for the first time since Valentine’s Day. There would be no changes at the break, not even to the stadium name. The characterfully named Giant Axe avoided the chop when the lucky winner of the ‘name the stadium’ lottery chose to retain the current moniker.

It was a poor start to the second half for Guiseley. The Dolly Blues equalised five minutes after the restart. A low free kick from Bailey found former Plymouth Argyle and Ipswich Town striker David Norris, whose flick-on nestled into the bottom corner to level the game.

It almost went from bad to worse for Guiseley. Referee Mark Reeves pointed to the penalty spot after Damba gathered the ball well from Bradley Carroll. To the Lions relief, Reeves wisely took time to consult the assistant referee who had a better view of the incident. The penalty kick decision was correctly overturned.

The assistant referee could offer no reprieve when the Dolly Blues took the lead two minutes later. A well-timed ball put Bailey clear of the defence and the Lancaster man slotted home decisively to give the hosts the lead.

The demoralised Lions struggled to impose themselves on the game in the same way that they had done in the first half. Lancaster began to take control of the contest.

Another good move by the hosts released the dangerous Norris. His shot from outside the box was comfortably saved by Damba.

Guiseley’s concentration slipped again as Courtney Meppen-Walters was dispossessed by Norris, whose incisive ball found substitute Nic Evangelinos. Damba’s diving save kept the Lions in the game.

With two minutes to go Guiseley pressed for an equaliser. Kwame Boateng produced a driving run and picked out Chippendale whose shot was blocked off the line to preserve the visitors lead.

Lancaster threatened to extend their advantage further as the The Lions struggled to clear the ball away in a dangerous area. It ricocheted towards City defender Kyle Brownhill whose shot produced a tremendous save from Damba who tipped the ball over the bar.

It was a disappointing end to an eventful season. With Guiseley having looked at one time as contenders for a late play-off push they suffered a drop in form towards the final weeks of the season. This all means a 13th place finish for Phillips' men. More positively the Lions finished without a negative goal difference for the first time since 2015. At the end of a challenging season Phillips was eager to thank the fans who had made the trip to Lancashire for a game that had nothing on the line to play for.

“After seeing how many Guiseley fans have turned out today, and made the effort to come down, I’ve got to take my hat off to them, and I hope the players can replicate their hunger and desire to win.”