Richie Bennett scored twice as Southport ended their winless run with a 2-0 win over Darlington.
The Sandgrounders stopped a run of six games without a win, including five defeats, to create some daylight away from the relegation places.
Bennett opened the scoring after 18 minutes as he reacted quickly to fire the hosts in front. The crossbar initially denied the forward after the ball ricocheted off his shin onto the bar from Marcus Carver’s cutback.
Southport held the slender one-goal lead for 70 minutes until Bennett rubber-stamped the win. The post denied Finlay Heath from a spectacular long-range free-kick, but the 32-year-old was on hand to tap home.
Port will have no complaints over how they secured the points. It was largely comfortable for the hosts, who dented Steve Watson’s momentum after taking control of Darlington, but they faced scares throughout the encounter.
It’s now four points from two for Southport as they have a weekend off before returning to action against Warrington Town, which begins a tricky run.
Far from routine for Southport
Southport returned to winning ways but it was far from plane sailing for the Yellows.
Jim Bentley’s side survived scares throughout the contest. A goalmouth scramble almost led to the equaliser for the Shakers only for a block from the hosts to thwart the danger.
Defender Ben Hedley came close as he saw his header loop agonisingly wide after a volley in the first-half whistled past the post.
The triumph stopped a run without a win – dating back to their win away at Buxton on November 25 – to move four points clear of the drop zone.
The slump rocked the positivity at Haig Avenue after the resurgence under the former Morecambe manager – which landed Marcus Carver with the National League North Player of the Month before Bentley scooped the managerial accolade for November.
After bursting into the playoff conversation, the poor run of results plunged Southport back to precarious waters. A fightback from two-down away at strugglers Gloucester City reignited the belief, and their somewhat comfortable display against a toothless Shakers attack lifted the Yellows back on track.
“Big win, much-needed, we’ve had a sticky spell of late,” Bentley told Off The Park. “It’s not rocket science to know where we’ve disappointed, we’ve conceded too many goals, too many mistakes and haven’t given ourselves a foundation to build on.
“We limited them to very little, although they had large spells of possession, we looked good on the counter, on set-plays. We want to get control of games, if we can, we’re creating good stuff and that’s where the goal came from tonight.
“Certain play I’m pleased with, certain bits we need to improve. Players are now coming up to the standards that we expect, it’s a big win. It was a point on Saturday and it would’ve only been a big point if we backed it up with something tonight, that’s what we’ve done.”
A much-needed win and performance
Match-winner Bennett took home the Player of the Match trophy but there were superb showings across the pitch.
The 32-year-old is likely to not have scored two easier goals, the first of which won’t live long in the memory – but they all count, in his career.
However, there were timely performances from Luke Burgess and Danny Philliskirk plus confidence-boosting goals for Bennett.
Burgess has endured a difficult start to life at Southport as his stint has been hampered by injuries, illnesses and off-field problems. Tuesday’s performance felt like something that came of age with all the hallmarks of a complete attacking-midfield display.
Philliskirk was immediately included in Bentley’s starting 11 when he arrived on loan from AFC Fylde. Since his arrival on Merseyside, the Oldham-born midfielder has quietly changed how Southport play despite falling on the wrong side of results.
With stints at the Latics and Blackpool on his CV, the loanee was important in how the midfield ran and thwarted any creativity that Darlington mustered.
“Benno was a handful when he first come in and won away at Buxton, had an illness at Chesterfield – he wasn’t right – and his game has suffered for it,” said Bentley. “We took him out of the team on Saturday, he came on got his goal and fired him up for tonight where he scored two goals.
“Luke Burgess is another one, he’s had an injury, an illness and was a little bit stop-start. You can see the quality, I worked with him at Fylde, he’s right up there with the best in the league. He certainly showed on Saturday his quality and tonight that he’s getting fitter and stronger.
“I think he’s (Danny Philliskirk) been good although we’ve lost games. He’s given something different, he’s got knowhow, plugs gaps, positionally and tactically good. There’s no coincidence our possession stats have gone up, we want to be rounded, there’s room to be adaptable within the shape and game.”
[Featured image: Julia Urwin – Southport FC]
