Workington made the perfect start to the new season with an impressive 5-0 home win over Ashton Utd.
Ashton manager Steve Cunningham had said beforehand that Workington played the Man City way, and he was given powerful evidence of their passing and pressing game in a splendid first half display.
The points were in the bag at the break with Workington sitting on a 4-0 lead, as they completely outplayed the visitors in a performance that had the 830 fans purring with pleasure.
The opener came on 12 minutes when clever inter-play between Greg McCarragher and Conor Tinnion on the edge of the area saw the latter lift the ball over Luke Harrison’s sprawling body and Scott Allison made sure from less than a foot.
Five minutes later Allison turned smartly in he box and although not a particularly well struck shot it found it’s way into the bottom corner.
Ashton were shell-shocked on 22 minutes when Sam Smith launched himself at a Tinnion corner and fired home with an air-borne left foot volley from a yard out.
Tinnion struck the outside of a post with an audacious lob and then on 43 minutes Allison completed his hat-trick.
The energetic McCarragher robbed an Ashton defender, hared into the area and squared the ball for Allison to turn home at full stretch.
There had to be a reaction from Ashton in the second-half and after Kielen Adams struck a post, Sean Newton fired in a 30 yard free kick which Jim Atkinson saved superbly at full stretch.
But when Adams was shown a red card on the hour after a kerfuffle following his foul on Dan Wordsworth, Ashton weren’t really in it again.
The scoring was completed on 87 minutes when Allison scored a fourth, a beauty with a curling left footer from the right-hand edge of the area to give him his 150th Workington goal.
Afterward Workington manager Danny Grainger said: “I couldn’t be happier with our performance because every single one of them did what was asked of them.
“I never imagined in my wildest dreams we could start like that but we are back in action on Tuesday at Morpeth and have to continue to set high standards.”
There are injury concerns – Lewis Reilly missed out with a hamstring injury and Fin Wallbank was also unavailable as he nursed a leg injury.
But both could be back in contention for Tuesday, although Grainger will wait for a fitness report on Smith who limped off after 40 minutes.
John Walsh spoke to Reds four-goal hero Scott Allison after the game and you can hear his thoughts here…..
