Gresley Rovers vs Hinckley Town
Right on Richard! – Andy Parker – Burton Mail
Richard Denby’s Gresley Rovers goals have been few and far between. But on Saturday the midfielder struck what could be the most vital of his Moat career.
Denby is treasured by Rovers for his midfield creativity and pinpoint passing rather than his strike rate.
“He’s one hell of a player,” says manager Frank Northwood. “But he should score more goals and I’ve been trying to get him to shoot more often.”
On Wednesday against Oldswinford Denby followed his gaffer’s orders and cracked one against the bar. On Saturday he said: “This time I kept it a bit lower and it went in!”
Denby admits that he doesn’t get on the scoresheet enough and confessed: “It was my first since I scored against West Midlands Police in the Vase – and that was last November! But I thought it was a good goal and perhaps it’ll stop the lads ribbing me for not scoring more often.”
Ironically, Denby’s ninth minute clincher came as a result of a wild and wayward effort from fellow midfielder Steve Astley.
Astley’s shot from 20 yards was so off target that it sailed five yards wide of the goal and didn’t even go out.
But Trace Norton put in a vital challenge and when former Gresley defender Barry Wilcox could only clear to the edge of the box Denby whipped in a ground-hugging volley that buried itself in the bottom corner of the net.
That should have opened the floodgates for Gresley, who were completely turning the tables over Hinckley after their 4-0 drubbing at Leicester Road just a few short weeks before.
That defeat heralded a period of poor form for Gresley but there were more signs on Saturday that the fluent form of before Christmas is returning at a vital time.
Kieron Smith picked up on Wilcox’s wild slice before crossing from the left where Neil Lovell just failed to make contact.
Then, after another blunder by Wilcox – having a nightmare on his return to Gresley – Graham Jones set up Smith for an effort that sailed wide.
Jones blazed wide when clear and Astley mishit an early effort straight to the keeper as Gresley produced some dazzling approach work. “Superb stuff,” said Northwood afterwards.
There was little to be seen of Hinckley as an attacking force, Jim Childs’ wafted wide effort apart, until exactly an hour had passed by which time Norton had again fired within an ace of strengthening Gresley’s lead.
Suddenly Andy Massey unleashed a piledriver from 18 yards that Aston could not hold but Dave Tedds, following up, incredibly poked the loose ball wide of an open goal.
Jones stung Chamberlain’s fingers as Gresley came again but still the decisive strike would not come and Gresley’s tension heightened. Finally the game dragged into injury time with more high drama to come.
Childs burst through on the edge of the box to fire a screamer towards the top of Aston’s net but the keeper, launching himself, pushed the ball over.
Even then there was time for midfielder John Lane to whack in a header from Tedds’ corner, but again Aston was spectacularly equal to the effort and Gresley were guaranteed a vital, third-in-a-row victory.
Gresley Rovers (1) 1
Hinckley Town (0) 0
Scorer: Denby 9.
Gresley Rovers: Aston, Dick (Bottomley 71), Guest, Denby, Haskins, Page, Astley, Norton (Acklam 88), Smith, Jones, Lovell.
Hinckley Town: Chamberlain, Potter, Purser, Wilcox, Lane, J Massey, Tedds, A Massey, Ebrey, Childs, Hopwell (Taylor 69). Sub not used: Williams.
Gresley man-of-the-match: Richard Denby.
Referee: B K Couldrey (Dudley).
Attendance: 313
