Gresley Rovers vs Paget Rangers
Fisticuffs mar Rovers' first win - Burton Mail -
Gresley's opening win of the season will perhaps best be remembered
for a 89th minute mass brawl.
Yet on a night of almost exclusive Rovers' domination, Gresley
boss Brian Kenning can be far from happy with the contribution of both his two
strikers Kevin Allsop and Dave King, who were both substituted.
Even before the Moatmen had taken a ninth-minute lead both Matt
Boyles, who blasted over after Matt Warren's initial shot was blocked, and Allsop
with a far post header following Carl Middleton's deep cross could have made
an early breakthrough.
Dave Travis's trip on Boyles had only one inevitable outcome -
a penalty - which Mark Peters despatched with the minimum of fuss.
The game should have been dead as a contest by half time with
Warren, Allsop Richard Wardle and Peters all having opportunities to consolidate
Gresley's lead. In sharp contrast, the nearest Paget came to breaching the Gresley
defence was when Ian Wright was forced to go full stretch to keep out Wardle's
headed back pass. While the visitors showed little passion for a fight in the
football terms there had always been a niggly atmosphere about the game.
So much so that it came as something as a surprise that it took
Rubery referee Ian Scarr 69 minutes to brandish his first yellow card following
Lee Hughes's challenge on Peters who was involved in all three of the visitors
cautions. Man of the Match Boyles finally settled Rovers nerves with the decisive
second goal in the 73rd minute.
Fastening on to a loose header from Paget skipper Richard Brown,
Boyles crowned an excellent home debut by firing over a stranded Gary Price
and into the net via the underside of the bar from 22 yards.
Scarr's attempt to try and let the game flow could have had serious
consequences as tempers boiled over resulting in a mass brawl involving some
18 players.
Paget manager Paul Madders tried to act as peacemaker and after
the game the Birmingham club's chairman Derek Culling made a formal apology
for his sides behaviour.
Gresley Rovers (1) 2
Paget Rangers (0) 0
Scorers: Peters 9 (pen), Boyles 73
Gresley Rovers: Wright, Broadhurst (Reynolds 87), Wardle, Bluck, Warren, Middleton, Peters, Coates, King (Doughty 68), Allsop (Sandar 54), Boyles.
Paget Rangers: Price, Travis, Walker, Brown, Hughes (Lee 82), Rowe, Burden (Begley 61), Burchill (Benjamin 68), Coll, McColgan, McDonald.
Referee: I Scarr (Rubery)
Attendance: 351
