Campion AFC extended their impressive run of form with a hard-fought 2–1 victory over Knaresborough Town at the Anytime Couriers Stadium, overcoming an early setback in difficult, fog-laden conditions.

The home side were shellshocked inside the opening 13 seconds as Knaresborough struck with their very first attack. A quick break in behind Nebard and Jamie Allsop caught Campion cold, allowing Slater Barnes to race through and calmly finish past Luke Wilson to give the visitors a dream start and bring an end to Campion’s recent run of clean sheets.

To their credit, Campion responded well to the early blow, quickly settling into their rhythm. Joe Mitchell, Sonny Whittingham and skipper Aidan Day began to dictate proceedings in midfield, with Day leading by example and covering every blade of grass throughout the ninety minutes.

The equaliser arrived in the 21st minute. Aidan Day broke free down the right flank before squaring the ball into the path of the impressive Sonny Whittingham, who showed great composure to place his effort from just inside the penalty area into the far right corner, beyond the outstretched hand of Ed Hall.

Despite the goal, it remained a lacklustre first half from the hosts, and the Campion players were made well aware of that at the interval by manager Lee Ashforth.

The reaction after the break was immediate. Just five minutes into the second half, excellent work from Ewan Gregson found Whittingham in space outside the Knaresborough penalty area. Whittingham delivered a superb cross which was met first time by leading scorer Paddy Sykes, who rifled an impressive finish into the net to claim his 19th goal of the season and put Campion ahead.

Looking to put the game to bed, Campion turned to the bench, with Shay Muirhead and Jack Normanton replacing Kai Phillip and Gregson. Muirhead wasted no time making an impact, embarking on a brilliant solo run, skillfully beating Kris Hargreaves and Jack Durkin, though he was unable to get a clean shot away while off balance.

Knaresborough made changes of their own and bravely switched to a back three in search of an equaliser. Campion looked to exploit the extra space, and Muirhead found himself one-on-one with former Campion goalkeeper Ed Hall, who produced an excellent intervention to deny the forward and keep the visitors in the contest.

The final ten minutes saw Knaresborough apply late pressure. A dangerous free kick was swung deep into the area in search of the outstanding Will Lenihan, who had been a rock at the back for the visitors, but Campion goalkeeper Luke Wilson was equal to it, bravely punching clear before the referee’s whistle confirmed all three points for the Red & Blacks.

The victory makes it eight wins from Campion’s last ten games and keeps momentum firmly on their side.

Next up, Campion turn their attention to cup action, travelling to Horbury Town on Tuesday evening (7:45pm kick-off) for the JCP Construction NCEL League Cup in Memory of James Hitchcock Quarter Final.