While the Stingers are soaring high in the North Coast Football men's 2^nd division competition, it was the Strikers who have now bested them two-zip in the regular season fixtures.

The hosts dominated the early exchanges but it was Macksville first on the board when Justin Murphy fired a ball to the heavens, and Strikers keeper Ben Honeybrook lost the leather in the sun.

Nambucca replied within the minute, when evergreen Clay Uquhart lanced a sharp header into the strings to level.

The hosts were running hot and Kai Allan was unlucky not to get on the sheet as he scurried one across the face from 25m.

And there was no let up on the Red goal, as Nambucca were twice denied only by the crossbar.

Thirty-eight minutes in the pressure told as Grant 'Biscuit Tin' Martin headed home from a corner to give the Strikers a 2-1 lead at the break.

Macksville rallied on the resumption, and a BJ Melouney thunderbolt at the bottom left of goal was magnificently arrested by Honeybrook.

But the signs were there that this would be the Strikers' day. Macksville goal machine Brodie Bartlett was tentative coming back from a hamstring injury, while their captain Paul Coulter blamed blisters for playing in joggers - reviving memories of the Graeme Langlands white boots affair in a grand final for St George in the 1970s (see footnote, pun intended).

The Strikers controlled the midfield, and queue music, queue Urquhart - as the over 35 years player was felled in the box and slotted the resultant dottie despite Stingers custodian Corey Forbes getting both mitts to it.

And Clay wasn't done - slotting two more to finish with four goals for the match.

At 5-1 the result was sorted, though Macksville's Quinton Threadgate - easily one of their best on the park, along with Paul and Romy Hewson, scored late.

In the first division which followed and in a top of the table contest, Bellingen were leading the Strikers 3-nil early in the second half.

Enjoy the gallery from both matches.

Footnote: Graeme 'Changa' Langlands was one of Australia rugby league's greatest fullbacks. But he played unusually in white boots for St George in the 1975 grand final against Eastern Suburbs (now the Sydney Roosters). The Dragons were flogged 38-0, and many blamed what was then unheard of as flashy white boots. Langlands though explained he had to take a pain killer to even take the field and said that was the reason for his poor performance that day.

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