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Story of the match:
The opening 10 minutes saw the underdog Lions having the better of their Vanarama National League opponents with a number of good passes and some set-pieces, but nothing would come of this otherwise positive start.
Just shy of 17 minutes had passed before the first real chance fell in favour of the home side, with Angus Chapman capitalising on a defensive error from Halifax to fire the ball at keeper Sam Johnson, but his effort saved and eventually cleared by the Shaymen.
Despite this, it would be the visitors who would take the lead against the run of play on 19 minutes after a low ball found the feet of Festus Arthur in the penalty area, with the defender controlling the ball well to smash it past Kyle Trennery and into the roof of the net.
Guiseley didn’t seem to be stirred by this setback, immediately getting on the attack a number of times in the following minutes and coming close on more than one occasion, but the visitors managed to hold firm against the onslaught.
As the game passed the 30 minute mark, the excitement had largely fizzled out, with only the odd chance scattered here and there for either side, but all still to play for as half-time approached.
The Shaymen nearly doubled their lead just before the break after a through-ball connected with Jamie Warburton, but his tame effort would fail to trouble Trennery and role wide of the net in what would prove to be the last chance of a competitive half in game that was far from over up to this point.
The second-half started as an open affair that saw Guiseley moving the ball well and into the danger area, but a seeming lack of willingness to pull the trigger ended up preventing a Lions equaliser, with Halifax nearly making them pay on 55 minutes, but Trennery was there to catch a close-range header from Mani Dieseruvwe.
The hour mark came and went with the Lions showing a greater attacking intent, but minus a 66th minute cross that showed promise, the issue remained of the team being unable to capitalise on their momentum in the final third, an issue that would need to be remedied quickly if they wanted anything out of the game.
Guiseley’s best spell of the half saw a pair of chances test the visitors’ defence on 78 minutes, with the first being a Lewis Whitman effort that was saved by Johnson, before the ball would find the head of Kwame Boateng just seconds later, but the defender narrowly headed over.
The Lions’ late momentum continued, but they were denied consecutively again on 84 minutes after substitute Adam Haw struck a thunderbolt that was deflected safely into the hands of Johnson, before Walker tested the Halifax keeper again immediately after, but the shot was caught.
The hosts’ rallying would be in vain, with Halifax holding out and managing the game well in the closing stages to secure their passage through to the next round of the Isuzu FA Trophy, with Guiseley left to rue their mistakes and wonder what could have been had they been more clinical.
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Manager’s thoughts:
Following the game, recently appointed Guiseley boss Paul Phillips agreed that his team performed well, but we’re simply undone by a single moment of quality.
On the matter, he said: “I think we could have stopped the goal, we switched off a little bit, we should not have let the ball come into the box from the short corner.”
”I thought we were absolutely outstanding from minute one against a very good team that is on a very good run and two leagues higher!” he continued.
With this game being only his second game in charge of the Lions, Phillips sees this as a real step forward with how he wants his team to perform, explaining: “The squad’s looking good, we just need to make sure now that we get a consistency.”
”We need things to settle down now, we need games to come thick and fast, which they will do over the Christmas period.” he continued.
Guiseley’s attention turns to their Boxing Day clash against Atherton Collieries, with Phillips already providing an outlook of the squad for the game, saying: “Jake Cassidy’s still probably a couple of weeks off so we’ll assess him, and the lads who were cup tied can now come into the squad.”
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Man Of The Match’s thoughts:
Guiseley named Lewis Whitham as their man of the match following a strong performance in which the number seven did just about everything but score or create a goal for his side.
Whitham agreed that whilst the loss was obviously frustrating for him and his teammates, there were still plenty of positives to take, saying: “We’ve had a couple of weeks off, due to the weather. “We knew it was going to be a tough game because they’re doing well two leagues above us and they’re a really good team.”
”I think we matched them, I’d say over the 90 minutes that we were probably the better team! “It is frustrating but you can only take positives out of that game because of how the lads worked and we did what the gaffer has asked us to do.” he continued.
Whitham also admitted the side’s errors leading to the visitors’ sole goal, saying: “If we’re being really critical on ourselves, I think we need to get out there quicker, press a bit faster.”
“To take nothing away, it’s a good finish, but maybe we could have pressed forward and scored, but I can’t even be disappointed!” he continued.
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Final Thoughts
Guiseley will have every reason to feel hard done by after an impressive performance against higher league opposition, but will take a lot of inspiration from their performance as they go into their festive fixtures against Atherton Collieries and Bamber Bridge.
Halifax on the other hand will be delighted with the result and will have a tie with either Swindon Supermarine or Harrow Borough on their mind, but for now their attentions turn to their festive double-header against Altrincham, a pair of games with massive play-off implications for both teams.