Hinckley Athletic vs Gresley Rovers
Second cup final for Rovers – Andy Parker – Burton Mail
Consistent Gresley skipper Dean Page buried the nightmare of Tuesday’s Hinckley Town debacle by leading the way to Rovers’ second cup final of the season on Saturday.
Page’s twice-deflected shot after 20 minutes put his side into an unassailable 3-0 lead over Town’s neighbours Hinckley Athletic and helped ease the pain of the own goal that had put Rovers on the slippery slope to their biggest league defeat of the season just four days earlier.
Page, though, was reluctant to grab the glory, insisting: “It was Paul Acklam’s goal – he got a touch after me.”
Acklam further complicated the situation, though, saying: “I got a touch but it was going wide until one of their players deflected it into the net – I was pleased to see him stick his foot out.”
In the end the referee Millership ended the confusion by declaring: “It was an own goal.”
Of one thing there is no doubt, however: Gresley are in their second Banks’s League Cup Final in three seasons. Halesowen Harriers or Lye Town the opposition.
If Gresley are to land their historic treble, though, they will have to sharpen up in the last third of the pitch. Despite a strong end-to-end wind, they dominated Athletic for 90 minutes and should have had a hatful of goals before Acklam finally made sure of a win on the day with a rare left-footed strike five minutes from time.
They return to Middlefield Lane on Easter Monday for a vital league encounter looking for a repeat win and manager Frank Northwood is hoping for better finishing next time. “We were saving some goals for then,” he said afterwards.
Gresley, who had struggled in the wind and mud on Tuesday, mastered the conditions this time round and put Athletic’s veteran keeper Colin Burton under pressure right from the off with a shoot-on-sight policy.
But with Burton rolling back the years to produce some stirring stops it took a bit of a fluke to open the way to victory.
Page, untaxed in defence, stole forward to collect Richard Denby’s pass and hit a low effort from the edge of the box that zigzagged through a crowd of players before ending up agonisingly in the bottom corner of the net.
Graham Jones, Neil Lovell and newly-restored midfielder Michael Guest all went close to adding to the lead although Page produced the best effort, a meaty volley after an exchange of passes with Denby that found Burton perfectly placed.
Gresley produced their best football after the break to destroy Athletic’s hopes of a wind-assisted revival. Jones shot wide when well placed then produced a good save from Burton with a firm header, substitute Andy Moore – on for hamstring victim Martin Haskins – shot just over from 12 yards and Kieron Smith rolled the ball inches wide after breaking clear.
Giant defender Paul Lambert levelled the scores when he climbed above Bob Aston to head in Mark Simpson’s left wing cross at the near post but Jones destroyed all hopes of a comeback when he cleared off the line after Aston had flapped at another cross from the midfielder.
Acklam gave Gresley the satisfaction of an academic win when he picked up Guest’s clearance and cleverly made space for a shot that somehow crept through the unfortunate Burton’s legs and into the net.
Hinckley Athletic (0) 1
Gresley Rovers (1) 2
Gresley win 4-1 on aggregate.
Scorers: Lambert 60 (Hinckley Athletic); Allen (og) 20, Acklam 85 (Gresley Rovers).
Hinckley Athletic: Burton, Markham, Walsh, Allen, Lambert, Simpson, Clark, Bennett, Carr, Lewis (Weafer 70), Hill (Coleman 77).
Gresley Rovers: Aston, Bottomley, Dick, Denby, Haskins (Moore 45), Page, Guest, Smith, Acklam, Jones, Lovell. Sub not used: Astley.
Gresley man-of-the-match: Martin Dick.
Referee: B T Millership (Tamworth).
Attendance: 210
