Gresley FC vs Sutton Coldfield Town
Gresley Youth 0 - 0 Sutton Coldfield Town
Having conceded a last-minute goal to go down 3-2 in their first match at Wolverhampton Casuals last week, Gresley were looking to get their campaign started and put some points on the board against a strong Sutton Coldfield outfit.
The first fifteen minutes proved to be cat-and-mouse with both sides testing each other out, Gresley looking to play their usual passing game, while Sutton were relying more on the ball over the top to try and get their big number nine away. Rikki Birch then produced a killer ball for the home side to put Danny Jones away on the right and his perfect pull-back saw Jake Sharp knock the ball wide with the goal at his mercy.
Jamie Davies produced a mazy run which petered out as Gresley continued to play football out of defence, before the visitors' Cavin Cresser had a good chance saved by the keeper, Luke Hemingway.
Sutton were coming more into the game and missed an opportunity from a free kick, which was matched by Sharp hitting the post at the other end.
The match then turned in Gresley's favour just after the half-hour mark as Town's big centre back, Matt Morton, received a red card for violent conduct following a touchline clash with Birch.
It was all Gresley now as they pressed hard coming up to half-time, Sharp and Birch putting efforts wide and Josh Pearson heading over from a corner before the teams went off for a welcome break.
The home team substituted Jones for Callum McBride at the restart before the visitors scorned a golden opportunity to take the lead, Tom Collins missing an open goal from an early corner.
Birch then had a shot brilliantly tipped over the bar by Sutton's Jordan Spencer, followed up by Pearson shooting over as the rain increased in intensity.
Sixty minutes gone and it was all Gresley, Hemingway dealing with the odd break from Sutton who were well organised and defending well under pressure, clearing off their line before a McBride overhead kick went wide.
Entering the final fifteen minutes the home side were becoming ever more desperate to score with passes going astray and more long balls being played with Spencer making saves from both Davies and Birch.
Ten minutes to go and it looked to be all over for Gresley as the visitors' skilful Alex Wilkes went down in the penalty area under a tame challenge, the same player opting to take the spot kick which promptly hit the bar before the ball was tucked into the net by Wilkes in a crowded area to spark wild celebrations as the goal was initially given, before a consultation between referee and linesman revealed nobody else had touched the ball before Wilkes 'scored'. Result after some confusion was an indirect free kick to Gresley and relief all round.
Sutton defended desperately to keep the home side away from their goal with balls being lashed away anywhere to clear their lines in the final minutes, while their man of the match, goalkeeper Spencer, produced outstanding saves from three close-range shots in succession to deny Gresley maximum points.
The resultant nil-nil scoreline in no way reflected the quality of football on show in a hard-fought contest between two well matched teams.
Gresley: Hemingway 7, Curtis 6, Metcalfe 6, Pearson 7, Guest 6, Simpson 6, Kirk 7, Davies 6, Sharp 6, Birch 8, Jones 6 (McBride 6).
Sutton: Spencer, Sly, Collins, Morton, Calkend, Watson, Brownhill, Cresser, Atkinson, Wilkes, Perry.
