STEETON opened their First Division North campaign with a disappointing 3-0 defeat away at Maine Road.

After an extensive summer re-build which saw manager Roy Mason recruit 15 new players and re-structure his backroom team, hopes were high heading into the journey to Manchester.

However, the new season quickly turned into the same old tale that plagued the Chevrons throughout the previous season as defensive errors led to loss as opportunities at the right end of the pitch, whilst few and far between, went wasted.

The men in green and white began brightly and had the better of the afternoon’s early exchanges.

But the game’s first real chance fell the way of the home side and parity was only retained thanks to a superb save from James Catlow between the sticks.

This proved nothing more than temporary respite as Maine Road opened the scoring shortly after in the 19th minute.

Steeton pushed forward but got caught on the counter.

With Harry Warren out of position, the hosts loaded up their right channel and the ball landed at the feet of Jean-Jacques Kirongozi.

The winger cut inside and floated a ball towards the penalty spot where Yousif Yousif rose highest to meet the ball and head it past Catlow into the bottom corner.

Mason’s luck went from bad to worse as Ethan Hudson-Parker had to leave the pitch injured just moments before Maine Road doubled their advantage on the half-hour mark.

A sloppy pass in midfield exposed space between the Chevrons centre-half pairing of Adam Hartley and Jacob Smith, and as a result the visitors would be punished.

Kirongozi again found himself the beneficiary of finding the ball in space, on this occasion opting to chip the ball over Catlow into the back of the goal.

Now in the ascendency, the boys in blue continued to surge forward towards the Steeton goal but found themselves denied on three separate occasions by a string of solid Catlow saves.

An afternoon to forget quickly turned into disaster six minutes after the restart, the home side finding a third goal by exposing more defensive frailties from their opposition.

Maine Road’s pressing game forced an error at the back as a poor attempt at a clearance fell into the path of Daniel Bishop.

The striker needed no second invitation as similar to Kirongozi in the first half, he chipped the ball over Catlow as the keeper rushed out to try and prevent the goal.

Josh Coe was introduced from the substitutes bench as Mason looked to find a way to get his side back into the game.

Coe nearly found that way as he managed to lose his marker and meet an Alex Stewart delivery at the far post, the header going narrowly wide of the woodwork.

Following the hour mark, with the match over as a contest, Maine Road had two late opportunities for a fourth goal, both were squandered.

A sobering experience for Steeton who must now re-group ahead of a busy August.

STEETON (Subs): Catlow; M Smith; Warren (A Stewart); Hartley (Gibbon); J Smith; Hancock; Green (Williamson); Barnes; J Stewart (Coe); Hudson-Parker (Lynn); Townsend.