Gresley Rovers vs Atherstone United
Fans flock, Rovers flop – Andy Parker – Burton Mail
Gresley manager Frank Northwood reached for the hatchet after his team had been contemptuously brushed aside by rampant Atherstone – and he wasn’t thinking of chopping Yule logs.
Angry Northwood’s side of Santas had been toppled from the first place in the Banks’s League in a thoroughly one sided game – and that spelt a bleak midwinter for winger Clive Arthur and young defender John Bottomley.
Northwood planned to axe both from his side and hinted that there may be some new faces around the Moat Ground in the near future.
But Gresley’s failure to provide more than token resistance to a side that looked well worthy of leading the table was down to more than just two players having bad games.
Anxiety and indecision pervaded a Rovers’ side that ended up standing back in awe at Atherstone, in Northwood’s words: “Gave us a good lesson” in front of the moat Grounds biggest ever Banks’s League crowd.
Adders, on the other hand, looked collected and confident throughout – although Rovers should have given them a nasty shock as early as the second minute.
Defender Martin Haskins was caught out at the back and Ian Early found himself clear on the left of the penalty box but with Rovers’ league record crowd poised to celebrate the full back-cum-midfielder took the ball too far and keeper Lee Spencer saved at his feet.
Rovers were to rue that miss for Atherstone were two goals up before they had another sight of goal.
Not that the home side weren’t given good warning of their guest’s intentions, after Ian Pearsall had earned an early booking for chopping down Rob Farmer, Gary Bradder curled a free kick just over the top corner and overlapping full back Paul Montgomery was given acres of space to launch a 20-yarder that flew inches wide.
Gresley had another let off when Bottomley’s poor clearance almost set up Mark Neale with a chance but the Moatmen just wouldn’t learn and, when Farmer’s header from a Bradder free kick came back off the cross bar, defenders stood like statues as Rob Parker nipped in to volley home the rebound.
Four minutes later Gresley again failed to clear effectively and Parker was unmarked on the left side of the box to score with a crisp, low shot.
Karl Austin saved further embarrassment with a sharp save from yet another right wing cross and, with Colin Taylor replacing Pearsall , Rovers briefly threatened a revival, Arthur’s cross curling just wide and Taylor bringing an excellent save from Spencer with a cracking shot from outside the box.
But just as it seemed Gresley might be making a game of it they conceded yet another stupid goal, defender Ade Waters being left totally unmarked to head in Farmer’s corner on 33 minutes.
Mark Bromley headed off the line from Neale as Atherstone continued to dominate after the break. Arthur and the hard working Martin Devaney provided a flickering threat at the opposite end of the field but in the end Atherstone were quite happy to camp out in the Gresley half as poor Rovers simply slumped to submission.
Gresley Rovers (0) 0
Atherstone United (3) 3
Scorers: Parker 9, 13, Waters 33.
Gresley Rovers: Austin, Bottomley, Bromley, Pearsall (Taylor 23), Dolby, Devaney, Arthur, Philpott, Laws, Beresford, Early.
Atherstone United: Spencer, Peacock, Montgomery, Parker, Haskins, Waters, Olner, Neale, Bradder, Farmer, Kennell, Sub not used: Brotherton.
Gresley man-of-the-match: Martin Devaney.
Referee: L L Watson (Coventry).
Attendance: 1244
