Match Report  |  Eastwood CFC vs Gresley Rovers

Harry Tizard

Steve Hart scored his second hat-trick in as many games as Gresley Rovers beat Eastwood 3-1 at Holbrooke Stadium.

Finding the net either side of half-time to give the Moatmen a two-goal lead, Hart scored his third just seconds after Louis Czerwak had halved the deficit for Eastwood.

His trio of goals on Saturday afternoon was the third time this season he has left with the match ball, with hat-tricks against Holbeach United and Newark helping him to 30 goals in all competitions this season.

Scoring three times, Gresley’s top scorer almost started the game with an assist to his name. Nodded on by Hart, Ryan Seal’s first-time effort from 30-yards sent Richard Dearle backtracking, but an outstretched arm from the ‘keeper was enough to push the ball over the bar and out for a corner.

Eastwood responded with a trio of chances but failed to test Lewis Fenney. After Kyle Stovell and Joe Harrison both saw their efforts miss the goal by a distance from the edge of the box, it was Ben Henderson who had the home side’s best chance.

Pressing well and winning the ball of Mason Frizelle, Stovell held up the ball well before sending it into the path of Henderson. Cutting onto his right foot, his low curling effort sent Fenney flying across the goal, with the ball bouncing just past the far post.

In a back-and-forth game, Gresley had the next period of dominance, taking the lead through a familiar goal scoring face.

After James Harrison sent his shot over the bar from close range, connecting with a brilliant ball in by Seal, it was Hart who gave the Rovers the lead.

Played in down the left by Harrison, the striker drove down the left before curling the ball into the bottom corner with the outside of his left foot.

Soon after sending the away fans into raptures with his creative finish, it was then the turn of Fenney to impressive the following supporters.

Initially parrying a direct free-kick, Feeney made himself big to deny Henderson from just three yards out, with most spectators in the stadium expecting the score to be level.
After an action-packed first-half, the second was certainly a slow starter. It took until the hour mark for there to be any noteworthy action. Positioned right of the area, a free-kick from Eastwood’s Callum Jones was low but tame, bobbling past the post.

Hart then had a shot from inside the box blocked before Eastwood had a second chance to equalise. Running through the centre of the pitch, Czerwak found space outside the area before firing the ball straight at Fenney.

Eastwood were probing for an equaliser, having the better of the opportunities before Hart struck again to double the Moatmen’s advantage.

Sprinting down the right wing, George Clark slalomed past two defenders inside the box before striking the ball towards goal. Saved by Dearle, Hart was at the right place at the right time.

With the ball landing at his feet just in front of goal, the striker had a simple finish into an open net.

Shots from Williams and substitute Kane Lee followed, with the efforts going over and straight at the ‘keeper respectively before Eastwood struck late to score what was a well-deserved goal.

Czerwak was the scorer, drilling the ball across goal, finding the bottom corner, and setting what seemed to be a nervy final five minutes for Gresley.

However, Eastwood’s hopes of getting a point out of the game were short, with the Rovers finding a third less than a minute after conceding.

Beating his man down the wing, Lee’s rifled ball into the box flew over Dearle and onto the head of an unmarked Hart, who nodded the ball in from close range to complete his hat-trick.

Corey Bucalossi then went looking for his second in three games but was denied by the Eastwood ‘keeper, who tipped his deflected shot wide of the post.