FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round
The New Manor Ground, Ilkeston
Saturday, 18th September 2004, 3.00pm
Super Rovers rock the Robins
This FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round was a typical 'game of two halves'.
Ilkeston Town, sitting top of the UniBond Division One and Gresley Rovers who were top just a couple of games ago were equally matched in the first half - but, the second period was totally dominated by the Moatmen as they ended their barren run of three games.
Gresley had the best of the first skirmishes and on 17 minutes a Karl Brown free kick found a slight touch which directed the ball to Matt Smith, but the captains header went wide.
Two minutes later the former Robins player, Aaron O'Connor went close with a shot just over the bar from 20 yards.
The Robins' first real threat of the game so far came on 25 minutes when a free kick by Dave Jarvis found Richard Lucas but his shot flashed wide of the mark
Debutant Matt K Smith did well to clear the danger of a Ryan Hindley cross and the play switched to the other end where Brown's free kick found Jamie Barrett but his shot went wide.
On 34 minutes Emeka Ejiofor did well to hold the ball up before passing to Barrett but again the final shot, from the edge of the box, went wide.
Justin Rowe was put through on 40 minutes and it took a fine tackle by Mark Lever to deny the goal the striker is looking for.
With just a minute on the clock Ilkeston had what was effectively their last chance of the game when a whipped cross from Hindley proved just too elusive for any of his team mates to capitalise on.
Gresley came out with the belief that the game was there for the taking and within a couple of minutes of the re-start Ejiofor was causing the Robins defence problems and his cross had to be scrambled away for a corner.
On 51 minutes Gresley took the lead. The lively O'Connor made a good run down the right before turning into the box where a clumsy tackle gave the referee Mr Stretton no option but to point to the spot. As Ejiofor stepped forward to take the kick a shower of monsoon proportions decided to unleash itself but it didn't detract him from completing the job sending Robins keeper Ross Turner the wrong way.
Twelve minutes later Gresley doubled their advantage. A superb run from Liam Hebberd, the halftime substitute finished with a cross that the impressive Ashley Dodd coolly headed home with the faintest of touches.
Dodd could have doubled his own tally on 74 minutes when he cleverly made space for himself before unleashing a shot that unfortunately hit the side netting.
The Robins day got worse when former Moatman Liam Walshe got his marching orders after receiving his second yellow card of the game for a late tackle on Brown.
Gresley added to their woe on 89 minutes when Hebberd got the goal his second half display deserved when after some superb play he easily beat Turner to score the third goal.
The visitor's could have rubbed salt in the Ilkeston's wounds when substitute Carl Slater, put through by Andy Simpson, tried to chip the keeper but Turner managed to get a finger tip to the ball putting over the bar.
In all honesty if this had been a boxing match the referee would have stopped the contest well before Gresley's third goal such was the Moatmen's dominance in the second half.
Manager's View
"I didn't really expect a three nil win today - not the way it's been going with us struggling to score goals. Ilkeston sent a message out to the rest of the league in terms of the start they've had.
"But I said to the players that we weren’t the second best team on Tuesday we just struggled a bit getting the fluidity we had in earlier games and that I was going to use today's game as a yard stick for the rest of the league season because Ilkeston, Telford and Mossley are up there to beat. We've come here today and got a result but in all honesty I'd rather have 3 points. I'd have liked to have come here in a league match and won three nil.
"But it's the FA Cup and a special competition and I'm sure the chairman is pleased with the prize money. Regardless of the competition we're in I'm delighted to have come here and won. We came here last season and beat them two one and then they beat us twice at our place so it's going to be a long season.
"I've just said to lads to calm down a little bit because that will stick in Phil and their lads throat and when we play them in the league they will be looking to level things up a little bit.
"I swapped Justin Rowe for Liam Hebberd at half time because Justin had picked an ankle injury up. He got a knock on Tuesday but he said he was fit to play but his ankle stiffened up a little bit in the first half and we made the decision after about 35 or 40 minutes that he'd have to come off at half time.
"Liam came on - he worries me when he gets involved in things because he's already suspended for Tuesday which is a shame after putting in a half like that. He's done tremendously well and Emeka's done a great job for us today. He's still a little bit short of match fitness and that's why we switched him near the end. When we got the penalty, I though oh, oh four penalties in pre-season and missed them all but he put it in for us and gave us a bit of a cushion to hang on to.
"The sending off opened the game up a little bit more and I was delighted with how we went about things. We tried to stretch Ilkeston all over the park and keep the ball and I was delighted with the attitude and how the lads adapted.
"Ashley Dodd's header was superb. Liam did well when he made a cracking run and slung a dangerous ball over and Ash got on the score sheet. He had another close effort with his left foot just go wide.
"I was delighted with the central pairing today and they've got to do that week in and week out because we've still got Carl Slater who hasn't had an opportunity to start and we have Andy Simpson on the bench whose been magnificent. My job is very difficult at the moment keeping people happy. Sean Gummer was not used today and he's not done anything wrong but I just wanted to change things around a bit. We've got the strength and depth to do that this season.
"Personally I thought Matt K Smith did fantastic on his debut. He's up their as man-of-the-match for me. He came in and has done superbly well and he gives us a good option and direct cover for Richard Wardle.
"When we got the penalty we were all looking round saying 'who's going to take it?' but I didn't know. Usually at the training on Thursday we go through things like that but I was in my sick bed so I feel a little embarrassed that we didn't go through that before hand.
"I said to the lads before the game not to go gung ho and try and go forward and chase the game because there was no need to, a draw would have been a good result. We got the cushion, Liam Walshe got sent off and there was no need to force the issue because we could have given the ball away and they could have got behind us and nicked a goal.
"At two-nil even with 10 men on the pitch funny things happen. We've won games with nine men on the pitch and things like that seem to galvanise teams so it was just a case of trying to be professional and not to do things we didn't need to do.
"Dale didn't have to pull off too many saves. The defence continues to be the basis of our strength and depth this season - they deserved their clean sheet and I'm delighted for every single one of them. It's probably one of the most satisfying performances since I've been manager of Gresley Rovers."
