FC Isle of Man bounced back from last week's heavy defeat with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Charnock Richard in the NWCFL Premier Division at the Bowl on Saturday evening.

After a cagey opening to the contest, the deadlock was broken on 21 minutes when a swift counter-attack saw Adam Adebiyi set Dean Pinnington in behind and he raced through on the left before squaring for Charlie Higgins to slide the ball into an empty net and give the Ravens an early lead at the national stadium.

Three minutes after the break, the Manx side extended extended their lead when Alex Maitland headed home a Kyle Watson free-kick from six yards out to make it 2-0.

But it wasn't long before Charnock Richard responded on 57 minutes through Simon Grand after a cross wasn't dealt with and he smashed the ball past Tom Crosbie in the FC Isle of Man goal.

The same player nearly equalised shortly after as he headed onto the bar from another cross from the right.

The Ravens rode their luck a few times, while Crosbie made two crucial one-on-one saves to maintain the narrow lead.

FC Isle of Man substitute Jimmy Lowther had a chance to wrap up the three points late on but he was denied by Hamer in the Charnock goal.

That save didn't prove costly though as the Manx side held on to claim a gritty 2-1 win which leaves the Ravens sitting 10th in the Premier Division table, only one point outside the play-off positions.

- FC Isle of Man's next game is at home to Widnes Town in the first round of the Macron Cup which takes place on Saturday evening at the Bowl, kicking off at 6pm.