Paget Rangers vs Gresley Rovers
Moatmen must go to a replay – Andy Parker – Burton Mail
Lacklustre Gresley came close to losing their hold on the Banks’s League Cup – and an unbeaten record that stretches back to March – on Saturday.
Not since a wet and windy spring night at Hinckley Town have Rovers lost to another Banks’s League club. But against Paget the misfiring Moatmen had to plumb the depths of their character – and also rely on a little luck – to stay in the competition they won so handsomely last season.
But Rovers had their share of chances too, to win a game that was much more about attacking flair than defending.
Paget drew first blood on 27 minutes Bob Aston’s kick was knocked straight back into Gresley’s danger zone by Steve Jones and Eric Sandiford. Who minutes earlier had failed to take advantage of a good opportunity by heading over Jason Darkes’ left wing cross, this time took full advantage of similar service from Derek Christopher by sweeping the ball into the net at the far post.
Gresley were rocking but two goals by Brian Beresford turned the game on its head. The first came after Steve Adcock knocked on Richard Denby’s through ball, leaving master marksman Beresford to haughtily ignore offside claims and shoot coolly past keeper Dave Lawrence from just inside the box.
Then Lawrence failed to hold an innocuous looking shot from Paul Acklam after Denby’s superb 60-yard pass and livewire Beresford was rounding the keeper with the loose ball when he was floored, revenge coming from the penalty spot.
Rovers introduced Guy Hall for the disappointing Michael Guest after the break but his first contribution was to impede Wayne Skelly on the edge of the box.
Christopher’s free kick was indirect but instead of leaving the ball to cross the line and go out of play Aston embarrassingly fumbled the ball into the net for a gift equaliser.
The Rovers keeper admitted afterwards: “It was a blunder. But all through the game I’d been asking the ref whether free kicks were direct or not, and on that occasion he just wasn’t clear about it.”
There were chances at both ends for a deciding goal, Beresford bringing a good save from Lawrence and then heading an Acklam cross against a post while Aston redeemed himself by pushing Steve Whipp’s 20-yarder round a post then saving superbly from substitute John Capaldi’s fierce drive.
Whipps had the best chance to settle the issue but he fired over from six yards.
Paget Rangers (1) 2
Gresley Rovers (2) 2
Scorers: Sandiford 27, Christopher 49 (Paget Rangers); Beresford 32, 38 (pen) (Gresley Rovers).
Paget Rangers: Lawrence, G Williams, Darkes, Snowball, Taylor, Jones, Skelley (Capaldi 75), Whipps, Sandiford, Christopher, Burroughs (P Williams 65).
Gresley Rovers: Aston, Bottomley, Perry, Denby, Land, Astley, Guest (Hall 49), Smith, Acklam, Beresford, Adcock (Lovell 72).
Gresley man-of-the-match: Steve Astley.
Referee: M Watkiss (Wolverhampton).
Attendance: 144
