Gresley Rovers vs Burton Albion
Rovers reign supreme - Rex Page - Burton Mail
Almost 40 years after the old Birmingham League first brought them face-to-face on a football pitch, Gresley Rovers finally and conclusively got the better of Burton Albion last night.
Rovers had never before beaten the old enemy in serious combat, but the record book was re-written as they extended a 1-0 first leg lead into a deserved 4-2 aggregate victory in the Barclays Southern League Cup at a packed and passionate Moat Ground.
Albion knew it would require a supreme effort to put the brake on the relentless roll of the Gresley bandwagon.
But, typically of recent events, they proved their own worst enemies and it was the mighty Moatmen who rose gloriously to the occasion.
The Brewers made a substantial contribution to a pulsating game that, unlike the first leg, lived up to all expectations.
In the two key areas, however, Gresley had the defensive edge. They made a better job of defending their goal and when chances came their way with a ruthlessness that Albion were unable to match.
Brian Kenning's men desperately needed an early goal. Instead the tie began to drift away from them as early as the seventh minute as they yielded feebly to Rovers' early flurry of pressure.
Albion were guilty of slack marking when the ball was thrown in from the left, allowing Mike Taplin to drive goalward a firm shot that rebounded for Paul Acklam to rifle into the far corner.
Once Albion got into their stride, however, they showed the sort of fluent form that has been their hallmark of their recent form away from home.
Peter Gocan, seizing onto Ian Brown's cross, had a shot deflected wide and in the 22nd minute Simon Redfern sent a diving header hurtling over the bar after meeting Brown's teasing cross.
The goal Albion had threatened came two minutes later, Darren Brain abandoning his defensive duties to supply a pass that Gocan squeezed inside Bob Aston's near post.
The Brewers looked capable of taking complete control, but all their goodwork was undone in the 31st minute when Tony Marsden was allowed to meet Richard Denby's inswinging corner unchallenged and propel a powerful header inside the near post.
With their tails up again, Gresley ripped Albion apart to plunder a third goal three minutes later.
Taplin made a good run down the left and held up Robbie Briscoe's pass until Richard Wardle arrived in the area to steer a right foot into the far corner.
As Albion rocked and rolled, only a wonderful one-handed save from Nick Goodwin spared them the embarrassment of conceding a fourth goal to Taplin's bullet-like header.
The sides continued to trade punches like a pair of old fashioned barefist fighters after the interval.
Taplin sent a shot fizzing inches wide after good work by Wardle and at the other end Brown wasted an indirect free kick after Bob Aston had been penalised for handling Stuart Evans' back pass.
Aston then fumbled an Alan Davies free kick, but redeemed himself with a quick recovery to save at the feet of Nathan Foster.
Foster, working hard in a new role on the right side of midfield, linked up with Simon Redfern to create a clear chance for Gocan, but as Aston rushed at him to the Brewers' striker hoisted his shot over the bar.
Albion, however, got the stroke of good fortune they needed to revive their hopes in the 85th minute when Davies's free kick deflected off Gresley's wall to leave Aston hopelessly wrong-footed.
Almost immediately, though, the Brewers could have gone further behind again when Taplin fastened onto a half clearance from Brain but saw his shot rebound into the arms of Goodwin off the inside of a post.
Gresley Rovers (3) 3
Burton Albion (2) 2
Scorers: Acklam 7, Marsden 31, Wardle 34 (Gresley Rovers); Gocan 24, Davies 58 (Burton Albion).
Gresley Rovers: Aston, Dick (Swainston 73), Briscoe, Denby, Evans, Land, Wardle, Marsden, Smith, Acklam (Weston 55), Taplin.
Burton Albion: Goodwin, Foster (Straw 66), Davies, Kurila, Brain, Simms, Gocan, Redfern, Jackson (Walklet 66), Jones, Brown.
Gresley man-of-the-match: Richard Denby.
Referee: B P Ellicott (Redditch).
Attendance: 1405
