Brilliant Bridlington Town Brush Aside Whitby Town in Trophy

Whitby Town’s FA Trophy campaign came to an end on Saturday afternoon, but Bridlington Town march on as they claimed a 3-0 victory against Yorkshire Coast opponents from the league above.

Bridlington Town produced a commanding performance to beat Yorkshire Coast rivals Whitby Town 3-0 at the HDM Energies Stadium and book their place in the FA Trophy First Round Proper for the first time in 22 years.

Facing a side from the league above, The Seasiders were on the front foot from the opening stages and created the better opportunities throughout a first half in which Whitby offered little going forward.

Bridlington's first real opening came after seven minutes when Ben Tweed turned a drilled low ball into Destiny Nnenanya's feet. The forward turned sharply before getting a shot away, but the Whitby goalkeeper reacted well to keep it out.

From the resulting corner, Tom Allan met Ahmed Salam's delivery, with Nnenanya getting a flick on the header that sent the ball just over the crossbar. Whitby struggled to establish any real threat, while Bridlington continued to look dangerous in the final third. A free-kick from Salam was played short to Casey Stewart in the 24th minute, although Stewart was unable to turn and get a shot away.

The breakthrough finally arrived four minutes later. Nnenanya was played through and drilled a ball across the box at mid-height. The Whitby goalkeeper could only parry the ball into the path of Luca Bolino, who made no mistake from close range, tapping the ball into the roof of the net to put Bridlington ahead.

The Seasiders almost doubled their advantage before the break. Stewart was played through and sent a ball towards the back post, where Bolino slid in but could only find the side netting. Then, on the stroke of half-time, Salam delivered a deep free-kick which was met by Allan. His header was directed towards the bottom corner, but the Whitby goalkeeper got down well to make the save. Bridlington continued where they left off after the interval and doubled their advantage seven minutes into the second half.

Another free-kick was initially saved with the goalkeeper's feet, but Whitby failed to clear the loose ball. It fell to Allan on the edge of the box and the captain's effort found its way through and into the back of the net to make it 2-0.

Lee Bullock's side almost found a route back into the contest three minutes later. Joey Phuthi stepped up to a free-kick in a promising position and struck a powerful effort that flashed narrowly wide of the target.

However, any hopes of a comeback were effectively ended midway through the second half. Another corner caused problems for the Whitby defence and Allan rose highest to head home, claiming his second goal of the afternoon and extending Bridlington’s lead to 3-0.

Bridlington did not sit back despite their healthy advantage. Nnanaya remained a threat and twice went close to adding to the scoreline. Norton first denied the forward with his feet before later gathering another effort after the ball bounced awkwardly in front of him.

For Whitby, it was an ugly afternoon in East Yorkshire. The Blues struggled to create opportunities, and Bridlington proved ruthless in both penalty areas to bring Whitby’s involvement in this season’s FA Trophy to an end.

Whitby Town TV caught up with assistant Blues boss Denny Ingram after the final whistle:

Bridlington Town manager Scott Kerr told Brid Town TV it couldn't have been any better from his side:

Both teams are back in action on Tuesday night- Whitby host Lancaster City in NPL Premier while Brid visit Ossett United in NPL East.

Both games kick off at 7.45pm.

If you really can't make it, there's live commentary of the Whitby game on This Is The Coast Extra.