UniBond League Division One
The Moat Ground, Church Gresley
Friday, 2nd September 2005, 7.45pm
Gresley at the double
Gresley Rovers got their first win of this season's campaign with a two nil victory over Eastwood Town at the Moat Ground.
For eighty minutes the game had a scoreless stalemate written all over it with the Badgers defending in numbers and the Moat Men failing to crack the stubborn resistance.
Both side need the win but it was the home side that opened the chances on 6 minutes when Nicky Carter put through a great ball for David Holmes who just failed to connect. Eastwood's Adie Francis then put his shot well wide two minutes later.
On 23 minutes Badger's keeper Danny Bryant was fortunate when he dithered and failed to deal with a ball that crossed his goal area with no Gresley player on hand to take advantage. However, the ball eventually found Carter on the edge of the box and his shot on the turn went just wide.
The first half was void of many chances for either side as both defences snuffed out any promising moves.
Holmes had a half chance on 34 minutes but his shot lacked any power and was easily held by Bryant.
Gresley did have the ball in the net on 43 minutes but Chris Gray's goal was ruled out for offside and the half ended with Paul Mitchell heading well wide for the Badgers.
Eastwood could have taken a shock lead when a speculative long range shot-cum-lob from Mitchell on 53 minutes landed on the top of the cross bar with Gresley keeper James Pemberton scurrying back to his goal.
On one of the rare occasions that the home defence were caught they were almost punished. Francis managed to get behind the back line and with Pemberton caught in no-man's land the front man fired straight into the hands of the grateful keeper.
Gresley manager Gary Norton brought on three substitutes during the half and reverted to a 4-4-2 formation and it seemed to do the trick. On 81 minutes one of the changes Paul Edwards on for Gray did well to make room for a shot on goal that was blocked. The ball fell nicely for Mickey Lyons who amazingly blazed his shot high over the bar from close range.
The home side were now pinning Eastwood back and with the Gresley supporters wondering if the defence would crack the goal they longed for came. On 84 minutes Aaron O'Connor did extremely well to hold the ball up and then shrugged off his marker before sending over a low cross into the Badger's goal area where Edwards was waiting to smash the ball past Bryant and into the bottom corner of the net.
The relief was immense and could be heard around the Moat Ground from supporters and players alike. Gresley then sealed the victory in time added on. Edwards returned the compliment for his strike partner O'Connor putting through a superb ball that sliced the visitor's defence in two. O'Connor, quick as a flash, ran onto the ball before slotting it past Bryant and into the far corner of the net.
Manager's View
"Both sides approached the game a little bit cagey. I was just nervy because of the goals we've been conceding recently and we wanted to make sure we were concentrating for ninety minutes and nice and solid defensively which I felt as though we were. Then midway during the second half and because we were at home we needed to be a bit more attacking and we wanted to take the game to them a little bit more so we switched to 4-4-2 and it had the desired effect.
"We've ground one out tonight. It was a big game for us and Eastwood because we're both in a precarious even though the league has only just started and there has only been a few games. So I'm delighted with the three points rather than the performance.
"Playing with one striker up front is not necessarily what we want to do at home. The goals we conceded at Nantwich and against Ossett, both games away made me a little bit nervous. We are still developing things all over the pitch. We don't really want it to be a negative formation it's something we're looking at. We actually wanted to, in effect be a 4-3-3 but at the minute it's early days and we are toying with it.
"I appreciate the supporters frustration but the football wasn't that bad. There were plenty of poorer games than that last season to witness. What we hoped to do with that formation was to encourage us to get the ball and pass a bit more through midfield because we can't lump it up to the lone striker and expect to get quality from him.
"I felt we looked solid defensively except for just a couple of times with the long direct balls in the second half they didn't have a chance and James didn't have a save to make.
"Paul Edwards went on and showed bits of quality he's got and he got us the first goal and set up the second - that's Paul Edwards.
"James had another good game and like the Kidsgrove game he didn't have much to do, but what he did he did well. There was one slight moment when there was some confusion with his centre half but apart from that he's done fantastically well and he got another clean sheet."
