LISKEARD manager Darren Gilbert described his side’s second half performance at Penlee Park on Saturday as the best for character that he has seen since his return to the club.

The Blues, trailing 1-0 to a Josh Magin goal and reduced to 10 men when skipper Josh McCabe was sent off in the 70th minute, suddenly started to cause Penzance problems and new signing Owen Pritchard equalised with a stunning looping header within a couple of minutes.

Liskeard then grabbed all three points on the opening day of the season with an 81st minute penalty from Harry Jeffery, who volunteered to take the spot kick because regular penalty taker Dan Jennings had already been substituted.

Gilbert said: “To be honest we’ve had a very tough week trying to get a team together which makes the result all the more special.

“We had to change our line-up five minutes before kick-off because Dane Hewings got caught in traffic (most of the other players travelled by train), so we had to change everything around.

“We went 1-0 down and I take my hat off to them. They stopped us playing, worked their socks off and for more than an hour they were the better side.

“Ironically the sending off worked in our favour. We changed things around, sent Dane on and moved George (Newton) up front, which is where we had planned to start him.

“Owen got us an equaliser and to be honest I was going to shut up shop at 1-1. We took DJ off and brought on Harvey (Mullis) to shore things up at the back.

“But we kept creating chances, Pinchy (Owen Pritchard) hit a fantastic 35-yarder which we thought was in but flashed inches wide, and then Scott Sanders was brought down for the penalty.

“Since I’ve been at Liskeard that was probably our best second half, character wise. The will to win was fantastic.”

LISKEARD ATHLETIC: Luke Gwillam; Josh McCabe (capt), Jordan Powell, Scott Sanders, Ben Collins; Matt Andrew, Harry Jeffery, George Newton, Dan Jennings, Owen Pritchard, CJ Pritchard. Subs: Harvey Mullis, Dane Hewings, Cory Harvey (gk).

Elsewhere in the division, two East Cornwall rivals met at Lantoom Park, but it was visiting Callington Town that ran out comfortable 5-0 winners at Dobwalls.

Cally who gave starts to newcomers George Soper and Shay McCarthy and returning striker Fin Harrison, dominated most of the game and took the lead inside five minutes via an own goal.

The second arrived 36 minutes in when man-of-the-match Connor Pritchard found the net and it was 3-0 four minutes after the restart when Harrison netted.

Dobwalls saw a certain goal prevented when the ball hit their own player on the line, and Cally scored twice late on via Harrison and centre-half Harvey Barrett.

Millbrook put in a sterling defensive performance to win 2-0 at Bude Town.

The Brook were much-improved in the second half of last season and scored twice in the final 20 minutes through new signing Jayden Preece and Alfie Cole.