Sunderland RCA suffered their fourth defeat of the league season as they were roundly beaten on a sun-drenched afternoon by Ryton & Crawcrook Albion.
It took just five minutes for the hosts to open the scoring at the Old Haulage Stadium through Charlie Grieveson’s effort following a set-piece.
Callum Guy’s lovely lobbed finish brought RCA level on 22 minutes, but Ryton soon restored the advantage with a Louis Calvert header.
Despite Calvert missing from the spot before the break, Ryton made sure of the points thanks to finishes from Joseph Groves-Forbes and Kyle Atkinson.
RCA’s XI was unchanged from the midweek outing at Chester-le-Street Town as Brad Forster’s suspension won’t commence until our next fixture. There were changes on the bench, however, as Kieran Charlton returned to the squad and Ryan Wright met up with his new teammates for the first time since his arrival from Bishop Auckland.
The hosts got their noses in front early after winning a free-kick in a dangerous position on the right. Fergus Lynch delivered and found Grieveson who prodded in from less than six yards.
RCA responded positively to the early set back as they looked to create openings for an equaliser. Midway through the half they got their reward as Kyle Fryatt’s intense pressing forced Ryton goalkeeper Callum Corkhill to play a poor pass from the edge of his area.
Guy quickly latched on to the opportunity and superbly levelled from 25 yards with a first-time lob.
The visitors were keen to build on the momentum, but quickly found themselves behind again as Jack Elliott’s deep cross was headed in by Calvert.
It looked to go from bad to worse on 35 minutes as Brad Forster brought down Dylan Lawson in the area, but Calvert fluffed his lines from the spot and dragged the ball wide.
Although it was a let off, RCA still had plenty of work to do in the second half. Guy’s speculative effort within a minute of the restart forced a save, but it would soon become an afternoon to forget for Ryhope.
Ryton found a third just after the hour mark. A cross to the back post from the left was nodded back across goal by Groves-Forbes who had only entered the game three minutes earlier. Lewis Charlton got a hand to it, but it wasn’t enough.
RCA looked to find a way back into the game as Wright’s header from Lewis Lukeman’s cross went just over and Jack Patterson forced a save with a half-volley.
The fifth and final goal of the game summed up RCA’s afternoon. Aaron Costello’s free-kick deflected off the wall and Atkinson seemed to be the only one savvy enough to follow it in. He converted with a deft finish and that was all she wrote in NE40.
It’s another quick turnaround as RCA prepare to host Alnwick Town on Wednesday at Meadow Park before returning to Ryton & Crawcrook Albion for their FA Vase tie next Saturday.
Ryton & Crawcrook Albion: Corkhill, Beesley, Fletcher, Lynch (Bailey 79), Grieveson, Plunkett, Elliott (Bell 62), Lawson, Anderson (Costello 62), Calvert (Groves-Forbes 58), Atkinson.
Sunderland RCA: L. Charlton, Richards (K. Charlton 63), Patterson, Bennett, Fowler (Dodds 70), Forster (Moan 66), Guy, Thompson, Fryatt, Lukeman, McGeorge (Wright 58).
