'Hurt' Challinor hit for six

DAVE CHALLINOR was hurting and angry as he tried to sum up his feelings after seeing his side's eight-match unbeaten league run hit for six by Northwich Victoria.
A 6-0 home defeat in front of the Bay's biggest league gate of the season (556) was a bitter pill for him to swallow.
The scoreline, in fairness, was a little harsh, and the Bay felt aggrieved by a penalty decision for a "dangerously high" foot when Michael Connor got caught as he stooped low to try and get his head to a Wayne Riley corner, and which gave Northwich their first goal.
"If you put your head two feet from the ground in a crowded penalty area when everyone is going for the ball then nine times out of 10 you are going to get it kicked and I thought it was a harsh penalty," said Challinor.
The Seagulls then crucially lost key defender Danny Grannon with a pulled hamstring and had keeper Chris Sanna handicapped by an injured ankle and they struggled defensively from that point onwards.
But the player-boss wasn't prepared to look for excuses.
Two dreadful individual errors handed Northwich their second and third goals to put the Seagulls in a hopeless position, and as they chased the game Northwich clinically picked them off on the break with three more goals in the last 15 minutes.
"I'm angry at the moment and my pride is hurt and I need to sit back when I'm calmer and look at what happened," said the player-boss. "But as I see it at the moment Northwich wanted it more than us and for me that is unacceptable.
"That has not happened very often and it won't happen again - or there will be changes.
"To be fair the lads have been brilliant so far. At the start of the season if we'd been offered the position we are in now I would have taken it, but after this we need to see a response from everyone on Tuesday.
"We've got one or two injuries to look at, but it is more about attitude and we'll have to see what happens in terms of team selection. At the moment I think I'm hurting more than some of the other players are and that irks me a little bit."
On the plus side, the Bay, who have dropped two places to tenth, are still only four points off the top five and still have games in hand on three of the teams above them. But this result is a big shock to the system.
And Challinor admits the fact that the Bay have won only one of their five home league games so far is also a worry.
"We are struggling to get points at home and we have to look at that. I am constantly trying to strengthen the squad to give us different attacking options, but it is not easy," he said.
Northwich, meanwhile, are now just one point behind league leaders Halifax, and former Lincoln City and Boston striker Ollie Ryan, who Challinor tried to sign in the summer, led the way for them with four goals.
Delighted manager Andy Preece said: "Ollie is desperate to get back into the Football League and his finishing and work rate today were tremendous.
"It is a fantastic win and a fantastic performance by our team. To come to a side like Colwyn Bay, who have only been beaten once in the league this season, and get a win like that is a tremendous achievement.
"There was some great finishing and two of our goals on the counter-attack were top drawer.
"We virtually had to start from scratch with the team this season and what we have achieved far outweighs what we expected. We are putting a squad together now that hopefully can maintain a challenge at the top."
Gareth Evans had a couple of early chances to put Colwyn Bay in front, but was inches too high with an overhead kick from a long Dave Challinor throw and then a looping header over the keeper also dropped over the bar.
Northwich were unlucky to have an Adam Carden goal ruled out for offside against a team-mate who didn't touch the ball, before the award of the penalty (the referee possibly making amends after the wrongly disallowed goal?) and that was put away by Wayne Riley.
The loss of Grannon soon afterwards was a huge blow - especially when his replacement Sam Bailey gave away possession on the half-way line with virtually his first touch, after Northwich had cleared a Colwyn Bay corner, and Ollie Ryan raced clear to fire past Sanna.
Six minutes into the second half, half-time substitute Anthony Sheehan then also gave the ball away in his own half with a dreadful pass and Riley burst through to score the visitors' third with a fine finish.
Colwyn Bay tried to hit back but Karl Noon shot wide from a great chance set up by Bailey's low cross and Challinor volleyed over the bar from a corner. But as they became stretched at the back chasing the game, Northwich picked them off with three goals from man-of-the-match Ryan in the last 15 minutes.
"After the penalty we've given away two shocking goals with individual errors to go 3-0 down and the game is dead," said Challinor. "We have changed things and had a go, but with Chris (Sanna) the way he was in the second half and playing virtually on one leg, we were always struggling."
Grannon looks very doubtful now for Tuesday and Friday's signing of Joe McMahon from Marine could not have been more timely.
Sanna is also a doubt. "He is having difficulty walking at the moment and we'll have to see it how it goes over the weekend," added Challinor.
Colwyn Bay: Sanna, Denson, Lea, Challinor, Grannon (Bailey 27mins), McLachlan (Sheridan 73mins), Evans, Allen, Noon, Newby, McGraa (Sheehan 45mins). Subs not used: Davey and O'Sullivan.