Gresley Rovers vs Newport AFC
Stuart Ford's brilliant saves and emphatic late strike from Dave Taylor were Gresley's highlights at the Moat Ground on Saturday. The rest of the game belonged to Newport.
The final score does not remotely reflect the Welsh side's superiority. Gresley have had some bad times at the Moat, especially of late, but rarely, very rarely have they been so totally dominated by their opponents. Manager Steve Dalby called beforehand for his to try and run the legs off the Exiles, whose average age is well above 30.
Instead it was Rovers who chased shadows and toiled tiresomely in toothless tilt at their aristocratic visitors. Newport and the guile, the cunning and the street cred. Rovers lacked bite, penetration, imagination: indeed, any of the qualities essential to a side aiming at the top six place in the Beazer Premier Division.
Newport hogged the ball from the opening whistle and were denied an early lead only by an astonishing save from Ford. Grounded, the keeper stuck out a hand to push away Mark Tucker's effort with the midfielder put clear in the six yard box by Jason Donovan's cross and Ceri Williams's flick on, Nick Stanborough hoofing the ball to safety. But only for a while.
With 23 minutes gone Rovers were undone again, Tucker making ground on the right, exchanging passages with Dai Webley and hammering the ball across the face of goal. No defender could get the ball clear, and when Williams knocked the ball back in Webley's flick left Tucker to convert from point-blank.
Six minutes later it looked all up for the Moatmen when Paul Wardle felled Webley on the left of the penalty area. Ceri Williams hammered the spot kick to Ford's left but the Gresley keeper flew across goal to produce a truly memorable save, pushing the ball wide with both hands.
It was a save to inspire his teammates, yet still Rovers could not haul themselves back into the game.
Ford saved well and bravely at the feet of Kevin Rogers to restrict Newport's half-time advantage to a single goal, and, indeed, if Taylor had managed to get better contact to Mark Hurst's left-wing cross at the far post in injury time Rovers might improbably have gone in level.
But just four minutes after the restart Rovers faint hopes of rescuing the game were fully extinguished, Brian Horseman heading Rogers' free kick only as far as the lethal Tucker who brilliantly lined himself for a sizzling, angled drive across Ford and into the bottom corner of the net.
Steve Williams' had a header disallowed for offside, Rob McGovern a shot in similar circumstances in a rare foray into Newport territory, and Rovers might have again pulled back an unlikely goal when Taylor escaped on the left, only to pull his cross disappointingly behind Andy Garner, well placed in the centre.
Newport soon provided another reminder of how to do the job properly, Tucker exchanging passes with Webley and walking the ball around exposed Ford to complete an excellent hat-trick.
Ford saved brilliantly again, this time from Webley's close range header, before McGovern provided Gresley's best effort thus far with a 30 yarder that flew just over.
Newport, though, were cruising now, and Tucker almost nonchalantly threw away the chance of a fourth goal when he fired carelessly wide after another defence crumbling build-up.
Gresley surely hoped for the ground to open up beneath their feet and provide an escape route from the torture, but kept battling as best they could, Taylor at last providing a tiny crumb of consolation by taking on Garner's with flick and hammering the ball high past John Roberts' left shoulder.
Gresley Rovers (0) 1
Newport AFC (1) 3
Scorers: Taylor 88 (Gresley Rovers); Tucker 23, 49, 65 (Newport AFC).
Gresley Rovers: Ford, R Wardle, Horseman (Marsden 75), Denby, P Wardle, Stanborough, Fowkes (S Evans 45), McGovern, Hurst (Garner 45), Mann, Taylor.
Newport AFC: Roberts, Lowndes, S Williams, Dowd, Price, John, Rogers, Tucker, Webley, C Williams, Donovan. Subs not used: C Evans, Vaughan, Jones.
Gresley man-of-the-match: Stuart Ford
Referee: J Wesson (Loughborough)
Attendance: 788
