RADCLIFFE Boro’s fortunes took a welcome turn for the better on Friday night as they won their FA Cup preliminary round fixture with a late winner against Woodley Town at Cheadle Town’s ground.

A closely-fought clash was eventually decided when Eddie Stanford converted an 84th-minute penalty after Steve Howson had been hauled down.

The game took until the second half to come to life, the only action of the first 45 minutes being a fourth-minute dipping Howson shot which shaved the post.

Mark Drew almost put Boro ahead after the break when his goal-bound effort from 10 yards was deflected wide by a team-mate.

Woodley went close twice on the hour when Danny Queely’s close-range header hit the bar before Gavin Salmon skied a simple chance from six yards before Stanford struck with six minutes left.