Racing Club Warwick vs Gresley Rovers
Rovers prove the worthier - Burton Mail
Gresley Rovers' tortuous FA Vase progress continued on Saturday - but once again the Moatmen had to take the long route to success.
Just as Mile Oak in the previous round, Rovers were unable to despatch their hosts inside 90 minutes. Indeed only a glaring miss by Warwick winger Gary Hannam in the final minute of normal time prevented Gresley from a defeat they were so anxious to avoid.
After surviving defeat at Mile Oak only after appealing to the Football Association - an appeal shown in the light of events to have been entirely just and proper - Rovers needed to do the business on the pitch this time. And extra time proved too much to handle for the home side, who two seasons ago took the Beazer Homes place craved by the South Derbyshire club.
An undulating pasture of a pitch made this hard to swallow - and good football marginally more difficult to produce. After a brief opening flurry of attacking by the home side there was nothing in it until Kieron Smith provided a deft header to Richard Denby's cross to put Gresley ahead after 27 minutes.
Racing stepped up a gear after the break and were good value for their equaliser on 59 minutes, centre back Joe Bennett thumping a close range header home after a right wing corner.
It was end to end after that with both sides going close right up until the second minute of extra time. Then John Barry provided a superb cross from the right and Neil Lovell's spectacular volley came back off a post for substitute Steve Adcock to divert home from close range.
Gresley - and the lively Adcock in particular - could have added more goals after that as the home side collapsed and the substitute was going through for a certain third when upended by sweeper Lenny Derby, Brian Beresford finishing the job of qualifying for the last 64 of the competition from the penalty spot.
RC Warwick (0) 1
Gresley Rovers (1) 3
After extra time.
Scorers: Bennett 59 (RC Warwick), Smith 27, Adcock 92, Beresford 117 (pen) (Gresley Rovers).
RC Warwick: Russell, Hancocks, O'Hare, Derby, Bennett, Billingham (Setchell 105), Hannam, Broad, Wooton, Deeley (Kelly 80), Fitzhugh.
Gresley Rovers: Aston, Barry, Elliott, Denby, Land, Astley, Weston, Smith, Acklam (Adcock 70), Beresford, Lovell. Sub not used: Sherry.
Gresley man-of-the-match: Kieron Smith.
Referee: K Wooler (Kettering).
Attendance: 157
