Crucial victory as Buxton win 'battle of the spa towns' at Leamington

According to the form-book, the unchanged Bucks only had to score to win as they arrived with a defensive clean sheet of over 300 minutes, whereas Leamington had no win in 14 NLN games, had won only once in 20 and had the unwanted sequence of just two goals scored in five matches in 2023.

And so it proved, with Diego De Girolamo's first half strike enough to secure full points.

Yet the encounter didn't become a Valentine's Day Massacre, even though for much of the 10 minutes after half-time the Brakes looked to be there for the taking as the visitors were virtually camped in their penalty area, seemingly certain to double their advantage and perhaps score more. However, somehow it didn't happen and that proved to be a significant turning-point.

The hosts, as if suddenly realising their one-goal deficit was recoverable, began to play with more urgency and belief, occasionally exerting serious pressure on a Buxton team that now needed to defend both in numbers and with quality.

For their part, Leamington huffed and puffed but clearly lacked a cutting edge.

On this first visit, the Bucks, finding a firm, flat well-grassed pitch with no wind to dictate the play, made an opening as early as the 10th minute.

On the left Jordan Barnett robbed Meredith and squared to Diego, whose shot was blocked on his home debut by Cann, the West Brom loanee goalkeeper.

It was a night when every scoring opportunity seemed to fall to the striker and in the 33rd minute, though grounded, he skilfully hooked the ball past the advancing Cann from 12 yards to establish Buxton's lead.

The Brakes had been the author of their own downfall with an unforced passing error in their own penalty area.

They mounted an immediate response with a 25-yard drive directly at Theo Richardson, who again impressed throughout with his safe handling, though not, unlike last Saturday, his distribution, some of which was wayward.

The Bucks were at their most impressive in attack in the opening to the second half after Josh Granite, as ever a superb leader, had back-headed to safety a dangerous deep cross from the left. Diego got clear on the left and from a narrow angle produced a power drive that Cann diverted for a corner, after which the striker had a shot cleared from the goal-line then another which couldn't penetrate the packed six-yard box.

Around three-quarters time Leamington did threaten, with Richardson forced to punch clear firmly at a corner, while first Hall then Kelly-Evans went close to the target with drives from distance, but once again Buxton's defending, with centre-backs Granite and the promising Hull outstanding, was able to repel the hosts' best efforts.

As at Kettering, manager Craig Elliott successfully used three experienced substitutes to stiffen his side's resistance.

The action ended with the award of a free-kick to Leamington by irritatingly inconsistent referee Wootten, but Richardson safely held substitute Cross's 30-yard low drive.

So the Bucks achieved a fifth NLN away win and extended their clean sheet to more than 400 minutes on an evening when it was the victory rather than the performance that was paramount.

Yet many present could hardly credit that struggling Leamington, apparently in free-fall, had kicked off with nine of the 11 who had played so impressively in the 1-1 draw at Buxton last August.