PORTHMADOG suffered their first defeat of the Huws Gray Alliance season as they fell to a 3-1 home reverse to title rivals Rhyl.

The in-form side were second best throughout a disappointing day at the office against a strong Lilies’ side, and they will look to get back to winning ways in their trip to Buckley Town on Saturday (2.30pm).

Eddie Maurice-Jones’ side got off to the best possible start when talented playmaker Mike Pritchard opened the scoring after just three minutes when he turned in a superb cross from James Murphy.

Pritchard almost notched a second soon but was unable to convert another chance after good work from Kristian Pierce, and the former Denbigh Town star laid on another opportunity on 28 minutes but Murphy failed to get his shot off from seven yards.

Port stopper Paul Pritchard had to be at his best to deny Pritchard and Murphy during a dominant spell from the Lilies, with the latter hitting the post during the opening exchanges of the second period.

Their persistence finally paid off on 55 minutes when a Joe Culshaw free-kick was met by defender Max Peate, who headed powerfully into the net to double the visitors’ advantage.

This setback provoked a strong response from the home side, who got themselves back into the contest after 63 minutes when a neat passage of play resulted in Gruff John firing a powerful drive past Lilies’ stopper Rory Crowther.

They almost levelled matters following the restart when an effort hit the crossbar, and the away side made them pay for this miss on 81 minutes when Gareth Partridge rounded off an impressive team move with a convincing finish to give Maurice-Jones’ ambitious side another hugely valuable three points in the early stages of the season.