Scarborough Athletic slip to defeat at home to play-off chasers Curzon Ashton

The hosts have now gone 591 minutes since they last scored a goal, despite some decent chances coming their way in the second half, writes Steve Adamson.

Attacking the Shed in the first half, Boro started brightly, Olly Dyson squared to Kieran Weledji, whose shot was blocked by Jordan Richards, then a fabulous move involving more than a dozen passes began with Lewis Maloney spraying a terrific long diagonal ball out to Luca Colville on the left, and ended when Dyson sent a pass from the right, inside to Weledji, but Richards blocked.

The visitors then began to take control, Stefan Mols dinked a shot wide, a long kick upfield from keeper Josh Ollerenshaw was headed wide by Richards, then on 21 minutes a right-wing cross from player-manager Craig Mahon was headed against the left-hand post by Will Hayhurst, and seconds later, Bailey Gooda did well to block a shot from Jimmy Spencer.

The deadlock was broken on 27 minutes with a stunning strike by Mahon, who raced onto a Jamie Allen ball across the area, and smashed a left-foot shot into the roof of the net.

Boro tried to fight back, Cody Johnson flashed a low ball across the goalmouth but no one could apply the finishing touch, a Maloney corner was headed goalwards by Will Thornton, but Hayhurst deflected the ball wide, and Weledji laid off to Colville, who screwed his shot wide, then Maloney also fired wide. Curzon almost doubled their lead, as Mahon raced into the box, and his shot deflected off Weledji, looped up, and landed on top of the bar.

Just before the interval Boro keeper Ryan Whitley pulled off a brilliant flying save, when the outstanding Mahon blasted a powerful 35-yard shot that swerved towards the top corner, but Whitley managed to twist in mid air push the ball away.

After the excitement and drama of the first half, the opening stages of the second period were scrappy and ragged, with both sides guilty of misplaced passes and poor final balls.

Boro brought on Dom McHale and Harry Green to play alongside Kole Hall in a three-pronged attack, and they did finally start to look dangerous going forward.

A long-range Dyson strike was blocked by Hayhurst, Weledji shot inches wide from a Maloney corner, a ball forward from Maloney found Rutledge, whose shot was saved by the keeper, then Hall headed on towards Green, who beat a defender before shooting against the right-hand post.

Just as Boro had looked capable of getting back level, the visitors doubled their lead with eight minutes to play, as skipper Spencer passed to Adam Barton, on the left edge of the area, and he placed his shot into the far bottom corner for another terrific goal.

Late on, Boro searched for a consolation, a Maloney shot deflected off a defender, with the ball bouncing up before being tipped over by keeper Ollerenshaw, Green set up Dyson, who shot wide, a Dyson cross was headed goalwards by Hall, but deflected wide by a defender, and in stoppage time a Dyson half-volley flashed wide.

Boro have now scored just two goals in their last 10 matches since registering their last win, 1-0 at Blyth back on January 23.

BORO - Whitley, Weledji, Dyson, Maloney, Thornton (c), Gooda (McHale 54), Purver, Johnson (Rutledge 72), Hall, Wiles (Green 54), Colville

CURZON ASHTON - Ollerenshaw, Matthews, Sinclair, Spencer (c), Hayhurst, Mols (Waring 78), Allen, Richards, Mahon (Campbell 85), Barton, Hughes

REFEREE - Harry Jones

GOALS - CURZON - Craig Mahon 27, Adam Barton 82

GOAL ATTEMPTS - BORO 13 (3 on target) CURZON 11 (6 on target)

CORNERS - BORO 6 CURZON 3

OFFSIDES - BORO 2 CURZON 2

YELLOW CARDS - CURZON - Jordan Richards, Isaac Sinclair, Rhys Hughes

SPONSORS BORO MAN OF MATCH - Lewis Maloney

SCARBOROUGH NEWS BORO MAN OF MATCH - Luca Colville

ATTENDANCE - 1184 (18 away)