Captain Ben Heads Park View Forward As Double Completed

Captain For The Day - Ben Gallagher

by Jeff King

Ebac Northern League Division 2 - Saturday 21st February 2026 Park View AFC 1 v 0 Prudhoe YC Seniors

Finally the weather relented and the First Team were able to return to active action. The visitor's to The Riverside being lowly Prudhoe Youth Club Seniors. The Seniors arrived on the back of no league wins in their last 13 attempts. Park View meanwhile hadn't won in the league for three games although last time out they had got a creditable 2 - 2 draw against league leaders Redcar Town. With PV just outside the play-off positions and Prudhoe fourth from bottom both teams needed a win and three points for very different reasons. Park View looking to complete a league double over their Northumberland opponents.

Back in September of last year a single Charlie Loveday effort had given Park View a 1 - 0 away win at Essity Park and PV were looking for more of the same. For their visitor's it was a case of trying to buck their losing trend.

PV went into the game without skipper Dylan Wilkinson who finally managed to serve his one-match suspension from the red card he received down in Grangetown last month.

This was also Park View's first game without top scorer Stephen Siyanbola who has moved on to Northern Premier League East's Blyth Town. It meant a reshuffling of the pack for Head Coach Micky Nelson.

Nelson was buoyed by the return of Alex Clark from injury and unavailability and he was selected to take the place of Wilkinson. Upfront and through the middle youngster Niall Armstrong was tasked with the task of filling Siyanbola's boots.

Midfielder Ben Gallagher stepping up as well to take on the Captain's armband in the absence of Wilkinson for his first leadership opportunity at this level.

A cagey opening first ten minutes saw a chance apiece for both sides that came to nothing. Prudhoe with a deep free kick taken by Freddie Marr that was overhit and James Hughes in the Park View goal collected comfortably.

Park View's best moment of the opening minutes came from a neat move down the right. Loveday flicking a ball nicely into Gallagher's path as the skipper burst forward. His 20-yard shot though lacked power and Sam Wilson saved easily.

However though it was Gallagher who ignited his side as leading by example he opened the scoring on 10 minutes with a peach of a goal. Ollie Taylor doing well on the right hand side to win the ball and then play an incisive pass forward.

It found Reyhan Grimaud sprinting forward on the overlap. Grimaud got to the by-line before whipping a superb cross to the back post. Gallagher timed his run perfectly to meet it with a firm header that flew past Sam Wilson into the net.

A great start for PV but to Prudhoe's credit they didn't buckle and had a half chance when Loveday presented the ball to Brad Lowes just inside the PV half. Lowes spotted Hughes off his line and went for the spectacular long ranger.

It wasn't well struck though and Hughes had no problems taking the ball as it rolled into his box.

Park View perhaps should have doubled their lead on 20 minutes. A Dylan Robson free kick was driven to the back post where Jamie Frizzel got up well and headed the ball across the six-yard box where Jacob Mallinson was free.

Unfortunately despite being only three yards out Mallinson mistimed his header and the ball glanced away to safety as Prudhoe got away with the scare.

Park View had been the better side in the first half of the first half but gradually The Seniors came into the game and had a decent chance on 28 minutes. Created by Freddie Marr who found Lowes in space on the edge of the box.

But although Lowes had a clean look at PV's goal he didn't connect well with his shot and it went well wide of Hughes' goal with the keeper watching it all the way.

The chance did spark Prudhoe into life and they enjoyed some good forward possession and almost created a couple of openings to get level. Ex-PV player Harry Marr creating the first one with neat play on the right and a low cross.

The ball reached Steven Anderson just outside the six-yard box and he tried a first time effort but Clark was alert to the danger got in tight on Prudhoe's #9 and cleanly blocked the shot.

The ball fell to Lowes who had a half chance but Clark's central defensive partner Robson was also just as quick to counter the situation and cleared the danger. PV showing why they have the best defensive record in the League.

Clark was playing like he'd never been away and was in commanding and creative form at the back. He showcased his abilities when he stepped in to stop a visiting attack and then made a superb break carrying the ball forward.

He burst into the Prudhoe half and very nearly gave Armstrong a clear run on goal but his well intentioned through ball was just a little bit too strong for the eager running forward.

Another good moment down the right hand side of their attack again showed Park View's defence in solid form. Fin Baty playing a great cross field ball from left back to find his advancing full back partner Riley Boertien on the right.

Boertien neatly played Harry Marr away wide right who delivered another dangerous low cross towards Anderson in the centre of the box. Robson though showed great anticipation and got across the forward to intercept and clear.

Virtually the last action of an industrious well contested half with very few chances came from a Prudhoe free kick on halfway conceded by Armstrong with a foul on Connor Lane.

Prudhoe threw virtually everyone forward and allowed keeper Sam Wilson to deliver the kick. Unfortunately for the visitor's the keeper put too much into his delivery and it drifted over everyone and ended the first half action.

The Seniors had shown that despite their lowly position and awful run of results that they were still very much in the game and started the second half on the front foot.

They kept putting balls into the PV box and although PV were not clearing their lines convincingly Prudhoe couldn't turn any of their pressing into clear cut chances.

One such ball saw Freddie Marr try to turn in the box and going down under a challenge. Prudhoe and their supporters screaming for a penalty but the referee was having none of it and waved the claims away.

Then two quick corners for Prudhoe saw Hughes command his six-yard box. The first corner came when Tom Wilson's neat cross from the left to the back stick was headed behind by Frizzel.

Baty swung the kick left footed right under Hughes' cross bar but the PV stopper punched the ball away well under pressure to concede another corner. This time Tom Wilson delivered the inswinger into the six-yard box.

This time Hughes' clearing punch almost set-up a decisive counter attack as Mallinson picked up the ball and drove forward. He threaded a ball through the middle that almost saw the marauding Brandon Young get on the end of.

But Sam Wilson came off his line and out of his box quickly to clear the danger just as Young thought he was going to be in the clear and one-on-one with Prudhoe's alert keeper.

On 54 minutes a moment of individual brilliance from Armstrong did almost double Park View's lead. Picking up a loose ball about 35 yards from goal no defenders closed him down.

Armstrong showed good control to move the ball forward and then unleashed a tremendous 25-yard drive which went inches over the bar with Sam Wilson even at full stretch getting nowhere near the effort.

Prudhoe then went close again when Baty played a free kick forward finding Anderson just inside the box. He laid the ball back to the edge of the box where Lowes came on to it and shot low towards the left corner.

Hughes though at full stretch got down well to tip the ball around the post. Baty delivered the corner. Another inswinger and another clearing Hughes punch to concede a corner on the other side.

Tom Wilson delivered and again Hughes was up to the aerial bombardment and cleared with another strong punch. Prudhoe were pushing hard but with Hughes in good form and Clark marshalling the defence PV held firm.

Indeed when Anderson was sin binned with twenty minutes to go and Prudhoe were down to 10-men for ten minutes Park View almost took full advantage. Armstrong with some great controlled hold-up play found Grimaud on the right.

The full back burst past a couple of defenders as he drove into the box before unleashing a great angle shot that saw Sam Wilson acrobatically beat away. Grimaud looked like getting to the rebound but Brad Rogers got their first.

He though could only concede a corner which Loveday delivered to the edge of the box finding Young who neatly set Frizzel up for a 16-yard effort that Sam Wilson did well to palm away.

The ball rolling free to Armstrong about 8-yards out but he was denied by a superb recovering scramble by Sam Wilson who got up quickly to get across and make a superb block to deny Armstrong a first senior goal.

Substitute Jordan Plunkett was the only player to receive a yellow card in the game conceding a free kick for a foul on Loveday. PV's wide forward took the kick himself but his delivery drifted just over the heads of its intended targets.

The last meaningful action of a well contested even game came virtually into injury time and it was a real scare for Park View. Skipper Gallagher adjusted to have fouled Tom Wilson just outside the box.

Wilson got up to take the kick which was in a dangerous position. He did well to get the ball up and over the PV wall and the ball was arrowing towards the top corner of the net.

But Hughes was equal to it and flung himself to his right to turn the effort away in fine style to keep his side in front and earn them three vital play-off points with the final whistle going not long later.

A very hard fought game and on the balance of play perhaps Prudhoe may have felt they deserved something from it. But when you have a defence playing as well as Park View's with a top keeper behind them it was a blank day for them.

A fifteenth clean sheet of the season for Hughes and his outstanding defence which at the moment and there's still a lot of games to go is standing firm. A clean sheet means you only need one goal to win the game.

Skipper for the day Gallagher's sixth league strike of the season was that one goal as Park View took a very welcome three points on their return to action.

TEAM : 1. James Hughes 2. Reyhan Grimaud 3. Jamie Frizzel 4. Ollie Taylor 5. Dylan Robson 6. Alex Clark 7. Jacob Mallinson 8. Ben Gallagher (c) 9. Niall Armstrong 10. Brandon Young 11. Charlie Loveday

SUBS : 12. Frankie Young (for Brandon Young 88 mins) 14. Ethan Lowery - DNP 15. Sam Beattie (for Mallinson 67 mins) 16. Joe Sykes (for Armstrong 90 + 4 mins) 17. Ethan Connelly - DNP

SCORER : Gallagher 10 PLAYER of the MATCH : Alex Clark