Driffield Rangers travelled to Hedon for their penultimate away game of the season looking to come away with the three points and keep the pressure on the teams at the top of the table.
Manager Shaun Walker was without Jimmy Syme and Rich Thompson but did welcome back Kevin Woodcock who slotted into the back three with Ben Dobson restored to the starting line up to play up front alongside David Brent.
Rangers once again started slowly and it was the home side who were enjoying plenty of the ball and on a big pitch were stretching Rangers across the park.
Rangers were dealt a blow ten minutes in when Dobson was replaced by Ali Mutch after he injured his knee again which will rule him out for the rest of season.
It was taking Rangers a while to get a foot on the ball but when they did they created their first chance of the match when a great cross from Young found MacKenzie at the back post but was at full stretch and just couldn’t direct his effort on goal.
Rangers had keeper Craig Baker to thank moments later when the Hedon striker found him through on goal but Baker stood firm and blocked the effort.
Hedon were looking good on the ball without seriously threatening the Rangers goal but despite the possession it was Rangers who broke the deadlock 10 minutes before halftime when they were awarded a penalty after the referee saw a shirt pull on MacKenzie and Hopper slotted home to give them the lead against the run of play.
Minutes later Rangers increased their lead when Young’s pass found Mutch down the left flank and his great run and cross found Tate at the back post for a simple tap in to make it 2-0
It got even better for Rangers just before half time when they scored again after Tate’s perfect free kick found Brent who powerfully headed home to give Rangers a 3-0 half time lead they barely deserved.
Rangers knew they had to step up a gear and were wary of what Hedon can do after their fight back in the corresponding fixture a few weeks back and they were at it again when within 15 of the second half they scored twice to make it game on again. The first goal was a good finish from a corner not cleared and the second was also from a corner as poor marking allowed a tap in at back post as Rangers were rattled.
Hedon were forcing all the pressure now but Rangers were defending resolutely and with their first break in the second half they gave themselves some breathing space again when defender Mark Woodcock, who roamed up field, picked up a deflection from Hopper’s shot to drill the ball past the Hedon keeper for a class finish.
This lifted Rangers and they scored again when good play from Tate saw him put Brent clean through on goal and Rangers leading scorer finished well for his 18th goal of the season,
Rangers made a change bringing on Jenkinson for Young but just when Rangers thought the game was about safe the home side were awarded a penalty when Johnstone felled his opponent and the spot kick was dispatched well past Baker into the bottom corner to give Hedon another lift.
Rangers made another change bringing on Wilkinson for MacKenzie and despite Hedon pouring forward looking to make it a tight finish Rangers defended well and managed to see out the game and record another vital three points which took them to second in the table.
Team: Baker, M Woodcock, Johnstone, K Woodcock, MacKenzie (Wilkinson), Tate, D Woodcock, Hopper, Young (Jenkinson), Brent. Dobson (Mutch).
Many thanks to Bob and his staff at the Rose and Crown for their after match refreshments.