Heanor Town 0 Barton Town Old Boys 1: match report
Tim Taylor came off the bench to snatch a late winner for Barton - just 24 hours after he was signed from North Ferriby United.
It was the first time Barton had met Heanor since five years ago in the Central Midlands League. The games then were closely contested and this encounter was no different.
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Goal on debut: Tim Taylor
On a glorious day for football, it was Barton who got into their stride first and they could have been two goals up inside the first six minutes.
Within 60 seconds of the start, Gareth Owen appeared to be upended inside the area, only for the referee to ignore Town's frantic appeals for a penalty.
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Less than five minutes later, Josh Schofield met Tom Bennett's superb ball into the box, only to see his powerful header superbly blocked by Neil West in the Heanor goal.
After 15 minutes, Gareth Barlow reacted well to clear a dangerous cross from the six-yard box as the hosts finally came alive.
That seemed to give Heanor a bit more confidence and impetus and Nathan Benger could have done better than fire straight into Town keeper Dave Bramley's midriff.
Owen did well to find Steve Norton in the inside right channel but the Barton frontman could only find the side netting.
Skipper Ash Dexter then had to come to the Swans' rescue, heading clear for a corner after Town had given the ball away cheaply in midfield.
Barlow almost turned provider, winning the ball well before seeing Owen's snap-shot parried away by West who recovered excellently to block the supporting Schofield's follow-up.
If Town had finished the first half on top, just, then it was the hosts who began the second in the ascendency, Bramley reacting alertly to turn Benger's accurate free-kick around his right-hand post. But although Heanor pressed, the Town defence, with Bramley looking supremely confident, held firm.
And with an hour gone, Barton began to come back into it, a Richard Medcalf head-on releasing Norton whose early-taken strike cannoned off the inside of West's near-post before Bramley came to the rescue, somehow getting across his goal to keep out a point-blank effort by Phil Austin.
With both sides getting hauled up for offside decisions, it looked for all the world as if the game was going to end in stalemate.
That all changed in the 88th minute. A Norton cross eluded everyone bar Ash Lattimore whose accurate return was bulleted into the top corner off the head of TAYLOR, from some eight yards out.
In the very short time left to them, Heanor tried to respond but Town were in no mood to let things slip, holding on fairly comfortably to maintain the unbeaten away start to the league campaign.
Thoughts now switch to Wednesday night and the visit of one of the title favourites and promotion hopefuls, Scarborough Athletic, to The Euronics Ground. The game kicks off at 7.45pm and promises to be well worth a visit.
Barton: Bramley; Marshall, Barlow, Dexter, Brunton; R. Cooper ( Medcalf ); Owen ( Taylor ), Schofield, Bennett, Lattimore: Norton. Subs ( not used ) Ford, White.
Attendance: 95
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