Ossama Ashley seals win for Salford City

Salford City 3 - 1 Tranmere Rovers

Ossama Ashley's curling finish capped a 3-1 victory for Salford City against Tranmere Rovers in League Two.

Author | Alan Thompson

Stadium | The Peninsula Stadium

The hosts began brightly and came close to opening the scoring after five minutes when Kallum Cesay's volley drew Joe Murphy into a diving save.

Haji Mnoga struck a fierce drive over the bar before Cole Stockton headed over from close range as Salford laid siege to the Tranmere goal.

Tranmere forward Charlie Whitaker forced Mark Howard into a sharp save with his feet as the away side gained a foothold before half-time.

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After Cesay had been fouled in the box, Luke Garbutt sent Murphy the wrong way from the penalty spot to give Salford a deserved 56th-minute lead.

Omari Patrick finished off a lightning-fast break to draw Tranmere level after 65 minutes, but missed an opportunity to give his side the lead when he blazed wide.

Tranmere paid for their wastefulness when debutant Daniel Udoh headed the ball down for Stockton to score after 81 minutes. Ashley then wrapped up victory for the hosts five minutes later as he curled home a third.

Cole Stockton marks his 50th appearance for the club with a goal

Cole Stockton celebrated his 50th appearance for Salford City with a goal in front of the West Stand in this victory. The forward lined up alongside deadline-day arrival Dan Udoh and it was the debutant who provided the assist, cushioning a long ball into Stockton’s path for him to finish confidently.

Having found the net on Tuesday at Wigan Athletic in the Vertu Trophy, Cole added a second goal of the week to bring his tally to 20 in 50 appearances for Salford. The former Tranmere striker remains appreciative of the chance he has been given.

When talking about the goal, the forward told the Salford City website: “It wasn’t the cleanest of strikes but listen, they all count, sometimes you hit them too well and they end up in the car park, then Ash come on and he stuck one in the top corner. It’s nice to see him back and he deserves that. We’re forming nicely now.”