AFC Fylde picked up their first three points of the league season after goals from Sam Finley and Danny Lloyd saw off Hednesford Town.

Despite a valiant effort from the away side to get back into the game with ten minutes to go, The Coasters held on to record their first victory of the season and get back to the familiarity of being the winning team.

The Coasters took the lead on twelve minutes through latest signing Sam Finley as he scored his first ever AFC Fylde goal. After a good ball from Charles down the right, Finley collected and hit a shot Dave Parton’s goal from around 25 yards out and the Hednesford goalkeeper could do nothing about the shot as it took a deflection and went past him into the empty net. It was on target, so Finley was credited with the goal.

It took the away side thirty-four minutes to fashion their first chance of the game. After Coasters left-back Adam Sumner was booked for a late challenge of Nathan Modest, Tom Thorley floated a free-kick into the box and captain Ben Bailey headed just wide of the target. That’s as good as it got for the away side in the first half as Fylde were largely the better team.

Danny Lloyd had a good pre-season for The Coasters and he made it 2-0 in this game on forty-one minutes when he collected the ball in the middle of the Hednesford half before beating a defender, cutting in from the right and firing past the helpless Parton. The Coasters were 2-0 up and coasting.

It was nearly just before the half-time whistle as Finley won the ball back in the middle of the park before finding Dion Charles with a great ball down the right and Charles forced a good save from Parton in the away goal.

The second half started much like the end of the first, with Fylde in control of the game. Dion Charles got in behind the defence almost immediately and forced a good save from Parton in the away goal, before Josh Wilson headed agonizingly wide from a Richie Baker corner.

Hednesford had two chances to grab one back, with Ahmed Obeng shooting just wide from just inside the Coasters box via a deflection. From the resulting corner, Tyrone Williams headed wide of Hinchliffe’s left hand post. Josh Wilson, who was playing as the lone striker in this game after Danny Rowe started from the bench, fired wide of target after a corner wasn’t cleared by the away defence.

The tall and powerful Marvin Robinson had the ball in the net for Hednesford but luckily for Fylde it was ruled out for offside. Tom Thorley tried his luck from 25 yards out and he stung the palms of Hinchliffe in the Coasters goal.

The away sides’ Paul Ennis hit the post from a shot just outside the box for the away side as they looked to get back into things and that was the closest they came to scoring. They went nearly as close moments later when Modest had an effort cleared off the line.

Tyrone Williams had the final chance of the game as he headed wide from a Thorley free-kick but that’s all Hednesford could manage as The Coasters took all three points.

AFC Fylde: Hinchliffe, Hughes, Sumner, Langley, Hannigan, Barnes (C), Baker, Finley (76), Wilson, Charles, Lloyd (77)
Subs: Rowe (76), Urwin, Blinkhorn, Collins, Bent (77)
Goals: Finley (12) Lloyd (41)
Yellow: Sumner (34) Finley (67)

Hednesford: Parton, Williams, James, Bailey (C), Tilt, Thorley, Spencer (45), Modest, Robinson (73), Obeng, Digie (45)
Subs: Williams (45), Ennis (45), Todd, Heath (73), Adams
Yellow: Modest (31)
HT: AFC Fylde 2-0 Hednesford Town

Man of the Match: Josh Langley
Attendance: 355