Notts County 2-1 Bromley (National League) 04.01.20

Notts County made it seven games unbeaten with their fifth win in six matches as they saw off a spirited Bromley to close the gap on the now fourth placed Londoners and move to fifth in the National League table.

The Magpies got off to the perfect start when Wes Thomas curled home his tenth goal of the season on just four minutes after good work by Sam Osbourne but the away side fought back in a first half which swayed from box to box. Thomas himself might have had a second when he raced through only to be denied by Bromley goalkeeper Ryan Huddart. Moments later from the resulting corner Lacy was brought down and Notts awarded a penalty but Rose struck the post as Boldewijn couldn’t force home the rebound.

That penalty miss could have proved costly on the half hour when Sam Slocombe was called into action to save high to his left to push out Billy Bingham’s long range effort. Soon after Slocombe saved instinctively from Williamson to keep Notts in the lead at half time.

Just five minutes into the second half however Slocombe might have felt disappointed as Cheek’s long range volley crept in for the equaliser and the visitors spurred by the goal looked far the livelier of the two teams as they looked to make it three wins on the bounce.

Notts though are made of tough stuff in recent weeks and Neal Ardley’s men dug in to get a foothold in the match and it was Connell Rawlinson who headed home from a corner.

After that Bromley bombarded the Notts box which was dealt with by the towering Magpies defence and as frustrations boiled over for the visitors bush saw red late on allowing the home side to see out the match with a victory that sends a message to the rest of the league.

Next up for Notts is Dagenham & Redbridge in the FA Trophy which might be considered an unwanted distraction following some terrific league form over Christmas and New Year.

Notts County: Slocombe, Rawlinson, Brindley, Lacey, McCrory, Doyle, Rose, Osborne (Dennis 83), Boldewijn, Thomas (Bird 83), Wootton.

Bromley: Huddart, Kizzi, Bush, Raymond (Hackett-Fairchild 71), Holland (Coker 84), Wood, Bingham, Rees (Klass 84), Williamson, Cheek.

Venue: Meadow Lane (5,192)

*Main image @Official_NCFC goalscorer Wes Thomas in action today.