Leigh Genesis 1 Bamber Bridge 3

ALAN Kershaw’s bow as Leigh Genesis manager ended in defeat as visitors Bamber Bridge scored twice in the final 20 minutes to secure all three points at Crilly Park.

A win against fellow strugglers Mossley on Tuesday, kick off 7.45pm, will see Genesis reduce the gap between them and second bottom, Ossett Albion, who currently sit three points ahead of Leigh in 22nd place.

Having taken over Genesis last week following the departure of former boss Mark Maddox, Kershaw introduced four debutants to the Leigh side, right back Dale McDonald, centre back Alex Grisedale, right winger Davison Banda and midfielder Sam Fairhurst.

Banda showed a glimpse of his lightning pace when he raced on to a pinpoint Andy Heald through ball on seven minutes, only to see his shot palmed away by visiting goalkeeper Ben Hinchliffe.

The resultant corner caused trouble for Bridge, as Grisedale did well to control and evade one challenge before thundering a shot past Hinchliffe for a dream start to his debut.

But with Leigh still celebrating their surprise lead, the visitors dragged themselves back onto level terms as Michael White met an Ally Waddecar corner at the back post and thumped a header past Genesis goalkeeper Adam Judge.

The visitors began to show more composure as the game continued, taking the lead on 72 minutes when Neil Black unleashed a rocket shot into the top corner of the net.

Bridge sealed their victory on 83 minutes as substitute Ritchie Allen wriggled into the area and his snatched shot rebounded only as far as Black, who knocked in his second of the game to confirm the points.

Leigh Genesis: Adam Judge, Dale McDonald, Scott Sephton, Steve Ferrigan, Alex Grisedale, Andy Heald, Davison Banda (James Carey 46), Rowan Garnett, Sam Fairhurst, Nick Eastham (Jack Smith 85), Jack Burke (James Kelly 72). Subs not used: Chris Dykes, Steve Brockley