NOMADS failed to continue their excellent pre-Christmas form as they crashed to a heavy home defeat against Parkgate.

Forced to field a weakened team due to injuries to the brothers Maher and the absence of Barry, Jon and Matt and others, Nomads were boosted by the arrival of new goalkeeper Phil and the return of Tim, who was taking a break from marathon training.

With captain Tommy choosing to play into the wind in the first half, it was always likely to be a struggle, and Parkgate soon gained the upper hand when converting a neatly worked move.

Nomads failed to keep hold of the ball, allowing Parkgate take advantage and add second, third and fourth goals before the interval, while Paul Hurst, who was suffering an ankle injury, was replaced by Bob, giving the keeper a rare outfield opportunity.

Manager Did was forced to make changes at half-time, with Iain coming on for Gary and Grant replacing John at the heart of defence.

But the substitutes could do nothing to prevent Parkgate from adding a fifth and effectively sealing the points on 60 minutes.

Despite this setback, Nomads began to play their best football of the game, and a cross-field ball from Dave found the hard-working Sean in space on the left hand side of the penalty area from where he coolly slotted under the keeper to make the score 5-1.

A cynical challenge from a Parkgate defender on Dave was punished with a red-card and Nomads were given further hope when, in a moment of inspiration, Rob turned inside the area and sent an unstoppable curling shot into the top right corner.

With ten minutes remaining and Nomads in the ascendancy, a comeback seemed possible.

But as men were thrown forward in the hope of more goals, gaps inevitably appeared, and Parkgate took advantage to score their sixth, and the game's final goal.