The Don Hill Memorial Trophy
Hillsfield, Mill Street, Rocester
Saturday, 27th July 2013, 3.00pm
Romans Put To The Sword
Goals from Rob Spencer and Dean Oliver ensured the Don Hill Memorial returned to the Moat Ground.
Spencer's first half header and Oliver's turn and shot in the area was the difference appears to have been the difference between the two sides but Gresley could have added four or five more goals in what ended up a comfortable win.
On a sweltering afternoon at Hillfield, Rocester the two sides met in this friendly competition in memory of late former Rocester chairman. The game hadn't been played since July 2010 with Gresley winning that match by a Lee Sutton goal.
The first chance came to Gresley's Eric Graves when he chipped back a poor clearance by Rocester keeper Richard Froggatt but the ball just cleared the bar.
Minutes later the visitors took the lead. A well worked corner saw Marc Goodfellow play the ball to Mickey Lyons who returned it to Goodfellow who then put a superb cross into the box where Spencer met the ball powering his header past the keeper.
Spencer went close to doubling the lead when he hit a shot that Froggatt blocked. The rebound came back and Spencer tried again but this time his effort was deflected away for a corner.
Lyons was then denied a goal when he robbed a defender of the ball on the edge of the area and with the keeper off his line lobbed the ball goalwards only for it to come back off the bar.
Rocester made a rare chance when Tyrone Taylor headed Aaron Dillon's corner over the bar but the first half ended with Gresley going close again. A long high ball by Goodfellow was headed on by Spencer from just outside the area but the effort went wide of the post.
Both sides made changes at the break and within a couple of minutes of the re-start Gresley extended their lead.
Goodfellow picked out Oliver who turned his marker in the area before hitting a low shot across Froggatt and into the bottom far corner.
The woodwork was Rocester's friend again when another well worked corner from the left involving Goodfellow and Lyons saw Goodfellow send a tasty ball into the box where substitute Danny Holmes was waiting to pounce but his shot struck the base of the far post and bounced to safety.
Fellow substitute Benn Minshull flashed a low shot across the face of goal with no one able to get a foot to it to steer it home.
The only second half attempt on goal by Rocester came when Tom Cooper-Richards hit a shot which Gresley keeper Gary Hateley managed to block. The ball broke to Lucas Harrison who then made a terrific run down the left before setting up team mate substitute Dean Withers who hit his shot just over the bar.
Holmes tested Rocester's substitute keeper Wayne Smith with a low shot which he managed to hold on to.
Smith then made saves as Gresley threatened to add to their score. First he pushed Hayden John's shot away for a corner and then denied substitute Richard Hanslow by tipping his curling shot also away for a corner.
Hanslow was denied again this time by the outstretched leg of Smith who seconds later denied Withers also by the use of his legs.
Manager's View
"It's nice to get a piece of silverware already! We changed things around a bit today playing four at the back, three in midfield and three up front. We treated it today as a game and not as a friendly and it worked.
"All round people played well as a team and put Rocester under pressure all the time. We wanted to get pressure on the ball and we did and that was from the front all the way to the back - everyone did their jobs today.
"Lucas Harrison has done really well; it was like having Jordi Gough back in the team! He's a young lad and he played really well today and he can only get better. There is still a long way to go.
"In the first half particularly in midfield with Sam Grice, Eric Graves and Mickey Lyons all three of them did well and got forward. I was really impressed with them.
"In the second half we brought on Danny Holmes and James Jepson and it continued. They upped their game as well closing people down. All in all a very satisfactory day but as we know with friendlies they are a bit up and down. Tuesday's game will be difficult but know we have got our heads on it and we've stopped friendly games and making them real games now it's a lot better and the players feel better with it as well.
"It's really difficult to treat friendlies as proper games. Frendlies are all about getting the players up to fitness ready for when we start on the seventeenth. Sometimes you have to juggle the players about. The only area we haven't been able to juggle them about really is in the back four. We are still lacking a few players; hopefully we may have another centre half in on Tuesday to have a look at.
"We are looking to bring more defenders in to the club and it's something we're working at. We do realise we do need to have better back up there but Hayden Johns has done really well since coming out of the reserves. He's stepped up playing as full back or playing as a three and he's basically got better and better each game he plays.
"With what's happened in the friendlies recently I was getting concerned that I'd have to bring new players in but today they've showed what quality we have got. I know we've got quality on the ball but sometimes we don't work hard enough as a team but today we've we have."
