Avro manager Alex Frost hailed captain Jake Cottrell as ‘priceless’ as his side chalked up a fifth straight win and clean sheet with a 1-0 win against Lower Breck at the Vestacare Stadium, writes Liam Bambridge.

In a game of very few chances on another blisteringly hot afternoon, tempers boiled over in first half injury time and when the dust had settled, home midfielder Kyle Jacobs and visiting keeper Josh Molloy were shown straight red cards.

However, early in the second half Cottrell broke the deadlock in spectacular fashion, smashing home the winner from 45 yards out with stand-in keeper Jonno Swatton barely off his line.

“Jake’s a priceless member of the squad,” admitted Frost. “His goal was amazing today, it would have beaten most keepers so let’s not take anything away from him for that.

“Ultimately it’s his attitude and his desire that are irreplaceable. That’s the hottest I’ve ever known a league game in this country, yet in the 95th minute he’s running around still giving everything he has to try and get three points, his chasing and closing down are absolutely relentless.

“We have an unbelievable set of lads this season and we are extremely proud of all of them. Without exception, they all worked their socks off for the cause and Jake leads by example - that’s exactly what you need from a captain.”

Frost’s biggest concern is that having expended so much energy against a Lower Breck side who dominated possession in the latter stages, his team have little more than 72 hours to recover before tonight’s trip to Barnoldswick Town.

‘The games are coming thick and fast at the moment and we have a few players missing, so there is not as much flexibility for squad rotation as I would have liked’, said Frost. ‘However, it’s the same for Barnoldswick and we worked ever so hard in preseason knowing that this was what August was going to be like. I’m confident that if we perform to the best of our abilities, we can get a good result up there’.

AFC Liverpool’s defeat at Northwich Victoria means that Avro now sit top of the pile with a perfect record from their first four league encounters. With near neighbours Bury AFC also starting strongly, supporters are strongly advised to purchase their tickets in advance via the club’s website for the mouthwatering clash between the two sides next Tuesday.