A LATE penalty from Fraser McLachlan secured a deserved three points for Colwyn Bay as the Seagulls landed their second away win on the bounce at struggling Eastwood Town.
The victory maintained Colwyn Bay’s secure mid-table position ahead of last night’s re-arranged Vauxhall Town match, and manager Jon Newby said he was delighted with his side’s change in fortunes after they worked hard to break down a resolute defence following the first half dismissal of Town’s Jervaise Christie.
“A few months ago it was all doom and gloom, and now it’s the opposite way around,” he said. “Everything’s rosy when you’re winning games, and we now just need to keep picking up points. Where we are now, I think if we pick up a few more wins we’ll be in a really good position.
“People will have expected us to go there and win, but you’ve still got to go out and do the job. It was a backs to the wall job when they had the man sent off, and it really showed our battling qualities.
New recruit Shelton Payne stepped off the bench to earn the 79th minute penalty after being tripped in the box, and Newby said he was pleased with the striker’s immediate impact, as well as his side’s first clean sheet in over a month.
“With Shelton Payne we have someone who offers us a bit extra, and he certainly did that with his quality. I think we’ve got a very good squad now with players who can offer something different from the bench and have an impact.
“It was a great game for Chris Sanna to come back in. He didn’t have a lot to do but what he did do he dealt with well, and the back four and defensive midfeilders all did their job well.
"A clean sheet is ideal, as you always know you’re going to pick up a point, and with the way our forwards are playing at the moment it gives you a great chance to get points on the board.