Guiseley 1 FC Halifax Town 1: Rooney sees red in derby draw

Kayode Odejayi headed The Lions into an early lead before John Rooney was shown a straight red-card shortly before half-time.

That proved the turning point of the contest, with Town the dominant force from then on, and equalising through Ben Tomlinson.

The blustery conditions and the bobbly pitch made for a roll-your-sleeves-up, get-stuck-in kind of game, and Guiseley made the better start, which was rewarded when Odejayi flicked-on a lofted free-kick from around 12 yards out, with Sam Johnson punching at thin air.

The lively Dayle Southwell twice brought good saves from Johnson before it went from bad to worse for Halifax as Niall Maher limped off injured.

But Rooney was then sent-off after a mass brawl broke out following a Halifax corner just before half-time.

That changed the pattern of the game, forcing Guiseley to sit back and protect their lead a lot earlier than they otherwise might have.

A horrible error by Harry Flowers saw him misjudge Johnson’s long kick forward, allowing Tomlinson to run clear and dink the ball cleverly over Coddington.

Jake Hibbs and Scott McManus both went close to completing Town’s second comeback victory in five days, but Halifax could still have left with nothing but for two excellent late saves by Johnson.

Elsewhere, Harrogate Town drew 1-1 at Tamworth in National League North, but it was another tough day for North Ferriby, 6-0 losers at Darlington.