Evo-Stik NPL League Division One South
Coles Lane, Sutton Coldfield
Tuesday, 1st November 2016, 7.45pm
Gresley Make A Point
Gresley managed to steady the ship slightly with a fully deserved share of the points at Romulus, indeed a little more clinical towards the end of the game and they could quite easily come away with all three points.
This was a much-improved performance from that on Saturday and they showed how they can play especially in the second half which they dominated.
Top scorers Pearson Mwanyongo and Courtney Meade both found the back of the net with Toby Fura and Leandro Browne having chances to grab all the points at the end of an entertaining game.
Gresley manager Damion Beckford-Quailey brought Mwanyongo and Meade back into the starting eleven with Alvin Jarvis making a return after not playing since the end of August due to a broken leg.
Romulus started on the front foot and Gresley keeper Rob Peet needed to be alert tipping Charisma Agbonlahor's shot over the bar. There followed a series of corners and one taken from the left by Ben Welsh picked out Jonathan Bukasa who blazed his shot over the bar from a very good position.
On 20 minutes Gresley had their first chance of note when Mwanyongo cut in from the right before hitting a shot that flew past the near post.
Reece Morris had a shot deflected for a corner which resulted in Gresley taking the lead a minute later. The corner was played short to Mwanyongo who ran inside before curling a superb shot into the top far corner.
Romulus hit back with Jordain Masidi shooting straight at Peet and then there followed a corner from the left which was only half cleared as far as Mark Branch who struck a shot through a crowded box which looked to be heading into the far bottom corner but Peet managed to get a hand to the ball and push it away for a corner. The corner came to Malachi Farquaharson who's low shot beat Peet and levelled the score.
Gresley almost regained the lead when a good move ended with Morris hitting a low shot which home keeper Rhys Bills held on to.
On 36 minutes Romulus took the lead. A fiercely hit shot by Levi Rowley from the edge of the area struck the base of the far post. The ball flew across the face of the goal and Bukasa was on hand to drill the ball into the net at the far post.
The opening ten minutes of second half belonged to the hosts with Masidi having a free header at the far post from a corner but could only put his effort over the bar when well placed.
Gresley soon found their feet and began to dominate the proceedings. A ball through the middle to Meade saw the striker hit a shot on the turn which went the wrong side of the far post.
Meade was more successful a minute later. He worked hard to recover the ball and then drilled a low shot which beat Bills.
Gresley should have been given a chance to take the lead just two minutes later with the clearest penalty shout seen by nearly everyone in the ground. Mwanyongo again cut in from the left and was hacked down well inside the area but amazingly the referee Richard Gardner said there was no contact and waved away the protests. Why he would have gone down when in on goal makes no sense. That decision certainly denied Gresley the chance of adding to their tally and possibly all three points.
The chances kept coming for the visitors with a header going wide from Leandro Browne's corner but the two best chances came in time added on. Meade made a good run down the left and put in a cross which was headed wide by substitute Fura in a good position followed by Browne who curled a shot over the bar with the goal at his mercy.
It was a hard-won point in the end but one Gresley fully deserved. It halted the run of losing games and gives the team plenty to build on for the next few games.
