ATHERTON Collieries pulled off a dramatic 1-0 win against NPL Premier Division title-chasers Matlock Town after a heroic performance at The Proctor Cars Stadium.

The Colls put in an impressive display despite losing captain Danny Lafferty 20 minutes in after a nasty-looking fall.

Aaron Smith eventually netted the winner in the 90th minute, sparking wild celebrations among the travelling Colls faithful and completing the league double over the Derbyshire side.

The first chance of the afternoon fell to the hosts, Matlock’s Liam Hughes testing Danny Taberner early with a shot from outside the area.

Despite the home side dominating possession, Colls makeshift defensive stood firm. Matlock’s Ross Hannah went closest before the break, scooping his effort narrowly over the bar and ensuring the sides went into half time goalless.

With both teams tweaking their formations for the second half, Colls saw Marcus Cusani - on for Lafferty - pushed up the pitch to form a four-pronged attack along with Smith, Matty Gillam and Zack Clarke, with midfielder Scott Sephton dropping seamlessly into the defensive back three.

Taberner, imperious between the sticks in the second half, pulled off the save of the game shortly after the break, diving at full-stretch to turn Hughes’ goalbound effort wide.

The best chance of the game came for Colls in the 66th minute, Clarke beating his defender for strength and racing through one-on-one. The resulting shot was blocked by the onrushing Matlock keeper, who managed to also dive on the rebound before Clarke could pounce.

Counter-attacking proved effective for Colls, Smith seeing a shot fly well over before a fierce Gillam strike had to be tipped over by the keeper.

Cusani then raced down the right flank with 15 minutes to go, but his low effort lacked the power to find the bottom corner.

Matlock’s Marcus Marshall saw a close-range effort blocked on the line in the 82nd minute, the follow-up effort blasted well over the bar.

The decisive moment came with less than a minute left on the clock, Gillam breaking through the middle and slipping it wide to Cusani, who in turn showed great awareness to square for Smith. The defender stumbled and Smith poked it home from close-range to snatch the win.

With a hefty five minutes of stoppage time added on, Colls continued to defend resolutely, Taberner once again on-hand to tip a last-gap Matlock effort over the bar.

The final whistle prompted jubilant scenes among the Colls support and players, who’s performance richly deserved their victory.

Tomorrow, Colls play against West Didsbury and Chorlton in the semi-final of the Lancashire Challenge Trophy.

The match is being played at the LFA HQ in Leyland, kick off 7.45pm.