ALEX Tichiner came off the bench to fire resurgent Rhyl into third spot with a 3-1 win over Holywell Town.

The striker proved to be the difference between the two sides during a highly competitive affair at the Huws Gray Alliance summit, and the Lilywhites received a further boost with the news that Caernarfon Town were held at Holyhead Hotspur, cutting the gap to seven points.

Mark Connolly’s side entertain Porthmadog on Saturday before travelling to The Oval to take on the long-time leader in what is a pivotal clash in their re-emerging quest for promotion.

A cagey opening to proceedings brought little in the way of goalscoring opportunities in the first period, with former Rhyl fan favourite Steve Lewis spurning the best chance of the period when his effort was saved comfortably by Rory Crowther.

The introduction of Tichiner after the break was a masterstroke by Connolly, with the ex-Conwy Borough striker wasting no time in making an impact after latching on to an Alun Webb cross to slot home within three minutes of coming on.

Things got even better for the home side soon after as Tichiner turned provider to tee up Connolly, and the player-boss made no mistake to head past Shawn Pearson on 53 minutes.

Johnny Haseldin’s side responded well to the setback and got back into the contest on 69 minutes when Tony Davies was adjudged to have brought down Lewis in the box, and Sam Jones reduced the arrears with a powerful spot kick past Crowther.

The visitors began throwing caution to the wind in the search of an equaliser and they were left exposed on 88 minutes when Tichiner was sent through and slotted past Pearson to complete the scoring as seal the Lilies’ seventh win in nine contests under the interim manager.