Gresley Rovers vs Rocester
Honours even – Andy Parker – Burton Mail
Opinions are all that is divided between Gresley and Rocester after the second draw between two sides since the Romans’ elevation to the Banks’s top flight.
Gresley have been trying to escape from their purgatory since long before the Banks’s League was even a twinkle in Rocester boss Alan Beaman’s eye – and two more lost points mean their chances of doing so this season are significantly lessened.
And on Saturday Rocester did more than enough to suggest that, if Rovers fail to find an escape route this May, the East Staffordshire side will be vying for a promotion spot next term.
Rocester bettered Gresley for much of the first half, went one goal ahead and could easily have doubled their advantage, only for Gresley to draw level in controversial circumstances midway through the second period and go on and dominate the remainder.
But as Rocester’s fans claimed a moral victory Rovers boss Frank Northwood was adamant that his side had been deprived of victory only by the vagaries of referee John Boulton.
“We should have won,” insisted the Gresley chief. “We should have had a penalty instead of the indirect free kick that we ended up equalising from, and we should have had another when Alan Dodd brought down Kieron Smith.”
Despite the ball’s consistently unpredictable flight off a bone hard pitch, the two sides served up an all-action treat starting from Smith’s second minute cross, headed away by Nigel Mottram as Tracey Norton homed in.
Gresley proceeded to dominate the early exchanges but Rocester battled like tigers to restrict them to a Norton volley, saved by the diving Blackley, and a Jones header, put over after Blackley had lost a Richard Denby corner.
Indeed, as the game progressed Rocester began to wrest control in midfield and took the lead on 29 minutes, Mark Fisher rode John Bottomley’s tackle on the left of the penalty area and his near post cross deflected off a defender to give Paul Ede the chance to head unstoppably past Bob Aston from a couple of yards out.
Gresley powered back and Rocester’s Paul Croft did superbly well to clear Jones’ excellent cross with Smith and Norton breathing down his neck.
Minutes later, though, a Croft slip let in Norton who controlled Jones’ headed through ball superbly before volleying within an ace of the top corner.
By that time Rocester had gone close to snatching a second goal, Aston saving brilliantly at the foot of a post after Mottram had met Alan Somerville’s cleverly flighted free kick with a powerful header.
Then Mottram left a trail of Gresley defenders in his wake only to shoot wide from 16 yards.
Gresley were left, quite literally, with an uphill task after the break but with substitute Neil Lovell showing more penetration than the off form Andy Moore – who had been involved in a car accident on his way to the ground – Rovers began to probe Rocester’s rearguard for an opening.
Indeed, the substitute almost found it himself when he picked up a half-clearance and weaved through the box only to shoot against the foot of the post.
Blackley began to look increasingly uncomfortable as Gresley launched repeated bombing raids on his goal and when he showed a full set of studs to the harrying Smith on 68 minutes referee Boulton made his fateful free kick decision.
Rocester massed on the line as Denby shaped to take the kick but were helpless as Jones latched onto a short pass to thrash the ball into the back of the net.
Gresley did most of the talking after that but Rocester could still have snatched it after another great run by Mottram a minute from time, Aston collecting the cross superbly as Ede shaped to decide the match.
Gresley Rovers (0) 1
Rocester (1) 1
Scorers: Jones 68 (Gresley Rovers); Ede 29 (Rocester).
Gresley Rovers: Aston, Bottomley, Guest, Denby, Skeemer, Page, Moore (Lovell 45), Norton (Maddocks 60), Acklam, Jones, Smith.
Rocester: Blackley, Slynn, Alcock, Ede, Croft, Dodd, Mottram, Somerville, Collins (Smith 72), Anastasi, Fisher (Nixon 80).
Gresley man-of-the-match: Michael Guest.
Referee: J T Boulton (Sparkhill).
Attendance: 493
