Midland Football Alliance
Allpay Park, Widemarsh Common, Hereford
Saturday, 6th August 2011, 3.00pm
Heavy Defeat For Gresley
Gresley had a rude awakening to life in the Midland Football Alliance when Hereford based Westfields gave then a lesson in finishing.
Although both sides had the same number of attempts on goal, seven a piece, Westfields converted five of theirs while Gresley could only manage one from Carl Slater.
Westfields are regarded as one of the better sides in the league and on this showing you can see why. They were fast going forward strong across midfield and determined in defence and despite Gresley having plenty of possession lots of their chances where dealt with comfortably.
The home side soon showed their credentials putting Gresley under pressure from the off. A long high ball saw visiting keeper Darren Keeing dash from his area to head the ball away. However, it dropped to Jamie Cuss who lobbed the ball back towards goal and it took the fast reactions of Matt Hill who raced back to clear the ball off the line.
On 10 minutes a cross from Hill found Marc Goodfellow at the far post and he slipped the ball back to Rob Spencer who skewed his shot well wide.
Westfields went close again five minutes later when the referee Mr Harris gave a dubious free kick on the right. Anthony Robbins's ball found the head of Daniel Price but his effort went harmlessly wide.
Two minutes later however, Westfields took the lead. A cross from the left by Aidan Thomas was met by the unmarked Craig Jones who headed home past Keeling.
Keeling then denied Phil Glover by grabbing his header out of the top corner as Westfields threatened to increase their advantage.
Gresley had three chances as the first half drew to a close with Lee Barrow heading wide and Jermaine Gordon firing a volley wide from 20 yards. A corner from Goodfellow was almost headed into the net by a home defender but a quick break down field saw Westfields double their advantage when Daryl Addis managed to hook a cross from the right into the net.
Gordon almost started the second half well for his side but his shot over the bar and then on 50 minutes he went close again but this time his low shot brought out a good save from keeper Jamie Moore.
Just as it looked like Gresley where getting back into the game they found themselves even further behind. After losing the ball in the middle of the park Jones raced forward and getting the better of Barrow curled his shot past Keeling and into the top far corner of the net.
On 59 minutes the homeside scored again and this time it was from a fine footballing move seeing some good passing before Addis slammed the ball home.
The travelling Gresley supporters were desperate to see at least a glimmer of something to cheer them up on their long journey home and it came just after the hour mark. Goodfellow made a good run down the left and passed to Gordon who was unlucky to see his shot clip the outside of the near post and go wide.
Six minutes later a consolation goal. Spencer flicked on a cross that Slater collected, turned and smashed into the net.
Goodfellow then went close with a shot that fizzed the wrong side of the upright but on 75 minutes the trip home from Hereford was made all the more miserable when a fifth goal for the homeside was added.
Robert Aldrich almost on the halfway line sent over a speculative high ball and whether Keeling misjudged the flight thinking it was clearing his bar allowed the ball to drop over his head and into the net to complete a dreadful start to the new season for Gresley.
Gresley could have added a second but Moore made a good save holding Jamie Barrett's header low to his left.
Manager's View
"It's disappointing whenever you get a result like that but on the first day of the season it was a disappointing result to take.
"Having said that, if you look at the balance of the game, the difference was in both boxes. Their finishing has been ruthless. I don't remember Darren Keeling having too many saves to make other than where he's tried to keep the five goals out. It was clinical finishing and the fifth goal sums our luck up really. He smashed an up and under from forty, forty-five yards away and it's nestled in the stanchion.
"I'm not going to panic as there was plenty for us there today. We started the game slowly without a shadow of a doubt. Their 6, 7 and 8 in midfield were very, very strong. They are very organised and they are always in the top five or six of this league and for a lot of last season in the top three. So it's a hard place to come to and they've got a good side.
"We created more than enough opportunities. I lost count of how many times Marc Goodfellow put the ball into the box just to be there to be knocked over the line but we were so flat footed.
"In the first half we were just getting ourselves back into the game having gone a goal down when we had two or three half opportunities but we were flat footed in the box not gambling, not reacting and they've gone up the other end a minute before half time and were two-nil up.
"We asked the guys to give it go in the second half and to try and get us back into the game and they did very, very well. The first five or six minutes we created two or three very good chances and then eight minutes into the second half you're three down.
"It was a rude awakening for us in some respects but there was enough there for me. We've just got to tidy one or two things up in both boxes attacking wise and obviously defensively and we've got to be a lot stronger across the pitch as well.
"We've seen a lot today and the level we need to be at. We've got a number of players to come back into the squad but it doesn't help when on the morning of the game your main defender pulls out with sickness and diarrhoea.
"We'll take the defeat on the chin. Overall a very disappointing day and we need to bounce back fairly quickly from that.
"Looking to Tuesday, Gary Hateley was on the bench having arrived back in the country last night. Darren Keeling goes away on Monday so that will be a straight swap there. Jake Duffy will be away as will Mickey Lyons. Royce Turville may be in the squad but he's been away on a stag weekend so we'll have to see what state he's in! We got some big players to come back into the mix, Baz Woolley, Gary Hateley, Mickey Lyons, Royce Turville, Ash Day and Jake Duffy and depending on what form they're in first choices.
"Tuesday will be a tough game because Dunkirk did very well in this league last season but hopefully we can bounce back from this defeat in a positive way."
