UniBond League Division One South
The Moat Ground, Church Gresley
Saturday, 7th March 2009, 3.00pm
Dynamo Handed A Double
Amazingly the last time a side baring the name Shepshed completed a league double over Gresley Rovers was way back in 1908-1909 season in the Leicestershire Senior League - Shepshed Albion.
And for 83 minutes it looked like they would have to wait at least another season before breaking that hoodoo until one Rovers' lapse handed Rob Norris the chance to end the drought.
The visitors started well and were inches away from taking the lead after just 8 minutes when a fine pass from Dave Davies picked out Sam Saunders over on the left who then hit a thunderous volley that crashed back off the junction of post and bar with home keeper Simon Baldwin helpless.
Rovers hit back and Brian Woodall went close 4 minutes later but his shot from the right flew wide and then minutes later young striker Chris Knight went close putting his header from James Davies fractionally over the bar.
Knight was involved again when a quick break out of defence by Lee Fell was continued by the striker who hit a low shot that seemed to go through the arms of the diving keeper Gavin Saxby but he recovered quickly enough to grab the ball at the second attempt as it rolled towards his goal line.
Rovers' then led a charmed life as three good attempts in the area from Dynamo were blocked or cleared by Barrett.
On the half hour Woodall made a fine run down the right and after easily beating his marker cut inside and hit a shot that appeared to hit a Dynamo defender in the face and as the ball flew into the air Paul Edwards managed to beat former Rovers' keeper Saxby to the ball but pushed the ball into the side netting.
Rovers' substitute Carl Timms, who had replaced Callum Keenan at half time, then almost caught the visitors out within two minutes of the re-start when he hit a somewhat speculative shot that flew just over the bar.
On 50 minutes Dynamo should have taken the lead when Norris was allowed to run in on goal despite being offside but his attempt was well blocked by Baldwin.
The home side went close to opening the scoring when Woodall again made a good run down the right before unleashing a terrific low shot that Saxby did well to get down to and push away.
Just after the hour mark Dynamo again wasted a good chance when Ben Saunders' cross picked out Norris at the near post but he put his shot went wide.
The goal that separated the two well-matched sides came as a result of one lapse by the home side.
Baldwin sliced his kick and it barely reached the halfway line and with a Dynamo having a player tracking back the Rovers' back line seemed to stop and wait for the linesman's flag which of course was not warranted as Norris collected the ball from just inside his own half and striding forward saw Baldwin in no-man's land sent over a perfect lob that cleared the stranded keeper and into the net.
Manager's View
"It was a bit of a sickener. It was a cracking game of football and I think everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. It wasn't perhaps a game for the neutral but if you were either Gresley or Shepshed but from our point of view the longer the game we might hang on for something.
"From Shepshed's point of view you could see when they got the goal how much it meant to them because they've been on one of those runs that when you are in it you are desperate for any result regardless of whether they are playing us or they just get a run-of-the-mill result against a normal side.
"Obviously they've beaten us so there was a little bit of an edge to it from their point of view. But it's come down to one little phase of the game when a couple of mistakes or misjudgements have cost us and that's such a shame because the performance we showed today over the balance of ninety minutes.
"Yes, we tired towards the end and yes, we didn't create too much in the second half but first half we created a fair few opportunities for ourselves.
"We had one or two half decent opportunities in the second half but as we passed the hour or the seventy minute mark it was always going to be, from our point of view, can hang on to what we've got because of the fitness.
"It was hard! I've just said to the lads in the dressing room, every single one of them can hold their heads up high on the performance today. It was a performance that we saw for a while when we first came into this situation but perhaps we've not seen for the last few weeks maybe since Belper.
"I thought we were worth at least a point today but that's football.
"The goal has come when Simon (Baldwin) misjudged his kick out and it's gone over to the right hand side. It was a collective thing, not Simon, the ball has gone over there but there was still a lot we could do. Obviously the guy coming back from an offside position has confused things, we switched off a little bit and Rob Norris making his run from deep managed to get goal side of us and finished well.
"So from our point of view it was an horrendous goal, a sloppy goal to give away especially on the back of a resolute performance. Just one phase in ninety minutes cost us the point.
"The lads are gutted in the dressing room. We've just got to bounce back and pick ourselves up. There were some encouraging performances today. Jamie Barrett at the back was immense for us and just looks like the cement that was holding us together. Paul Edward's has done a very good job there but Jamie gives us a little more pace to the side as well.
"It enabled us to get Paul up the other end of the pitch and try and get hold of something because in recent weeks it's been coming back from the front two far too easily.
"Ryan Spittle who we had playing up there last week picked a knock up in mid week playing for his college side so we couldn't utilise him today and I thought for an hour Eddie did okay for us. He's not been outstanding but he's done enough for us and the young fellow who played up there with him as done very well as well.
"So there were lots of positives but it's ended in defeat so we've got no excuses for what's happened. We've got to pick everybody up and it might have been one of those games where if we had managed to hold it nil-nil you never know we might have snuck up and grabbed something at the other end but it wasn't to be.
"Chris Knight had a couple of half chances in the first half, he's very lively and a young eighteen year-old we've just picked up and he's showing he's more than capable of holding his own at this level of football. He did very, very well for us but unfortunately couldn't quite make the break through.
"Eddie (Paul Edwards) had a good chance when the ball's gone up in the air and he's pressurised Sax (Gavin Saxby) but it's just gone the wrong side and has I've said Knighty (Chris Knight) has one or two. Their keeper made a very good save from Woodall in the second half when he got down well and kept it out.
"In all honesty we've not had too much to do in terms of saves to make from the keeper. Shepshed had lots of possession but our shape for most of the time was good and I thought collectively defensively as a unit we've been a lot better than we have been. And then it's frustrating when that incident happens and it costs you the game.
"When we're talking about players doing well young Nathan Rolph at left back who is a cracking little player. We had Jordi Gough declared fit before the game and I was a little bit nervous in using him from the start but it never even entered my mind to start Jordi at left back because Nathan has done very well and he's put another good shift in as well today. So, hopefully he can maintain that level of performance as there's a little bit of pressure on the shirt now because Nathan Tate has been told he can start full training this week and the pleasing thing is that we're starting to get bodies back. Chris Mawbey in a couple of weeks or three weeks time will be back in contention so we've got bodies around.
"Today we've left players out of the squad. Liam Hebberd's not in the squad and Mickey Lonergan's not in the squad today and Ryan Spittle's injured and John Shales whose been in for treatment and hopefully will be given the all clear to start training midweek so we're starting to have a little bit of options in terms of pressure for shirts and competition for shirts that perhaps we haven't had since we've had the injuries and while we've been thin on the ground.
"Hopefully, come next Saturday, and we always hope week to week that we can go and get a result at Leek."
