Evo-Stik NPL Division One South
The Moat Ground, Church Gresley
Saturday, 5th January 2013, 3.00pm
Gresley Beaten At The Moat
Gresley can feel themselves a little unlucky not to have got a share of the points when they took on the second placed side Stamford at the Moat Ground.
Richard Hanslow had given the home side the perfect start after just five minutes when he followed up Marc Strzyzewski's header which had been blocked. However two goals in seven minutes at the end of the first half gave the visitors the lead. With Gresley looking to get back into the game Ricky Miller fired his second goal and Stamford's third with just minutes remaining.
Gresley were forced into to making a change to the starting line-up with Marc Goodfellow replacing the injured Rob Spencer and James Jepson coming back into midfield at the expense of Mickey Lyons.
Opening very well Gresley took the lead when Jepson's corner from the left was strongly headed towards goal but his effort was blocked but Hanslow following up hammered the ball home from close in.
Jodan Nadat was then unlucky when his shot was blocked but minutes later Gresley were very unlucky not to have added to their total. Hanslow in a clear onside position when the ball was played to him cheekily back heeled the ball into the net but was harshly adjudged to have been in an offside position. Holmes then saw a shot fizz just the wrong side of the post.
Stamford should have levelled things when a free kick from Andy Hall picked out James Ozmen unmarked but his shot was a wild one going well over the bar.
However, they were back on terms minutes later and it was more poor defending which saw Hall race through before slipping the ball to Jack Gibson who was left in space and he made no mistake hitting the ball past keeper Gary Hateley.
Things wnet from bad to worse for Gresley as the conceded another goal just before the break and again it was the result of some poor defending. A run down the left ended with Ricky Miller being given the ball and he coolly beat Hateley.
Gresley started the second half brightly but it was the visitors who had the best of the early chances with Jack McGovern making a great run down the right but his low cross into the area evaded both the Stamford's players racing forward.
Stamford's next chance should have resulted in a goal when Gibson made a quick break and with just Hateley to beat hit an awful shot that went well wide.
Gresley were pushing forward looking to get something out of the game but finding it difficult to break down some resolute defending by the visitors. Of course this left Gresley vulnerable to the quick break. Twice Stamford capitalised on this with two chances the first of which was denied by Hateley at his near post blocking Miller's shot but the Gresley keeper failed to stop Miller's next chance as again the frontman beat a static defence before flashing a shot past Hateley and into the net.
With the game almost at an end, Gresley substitute Aaron Dillon went close to reducing the deficit when his goal bound shot was deflected leaving Stamford keeper Matt Finley rooted to the spot but agonisingly for Gresley the ball flew the wrong side of the upright.
Manager's View
Martin Rowe
"We changed our shape today and tried to get a bit more width into our game which I felt in the first thirty minutes we did. We went one-nil up and had enough chances to have got a few more goals. From our free kick they've broken and stuck into the back of the net.
"They got one later on which was similar. We cleared our lines and all of a sudden they are at us and bump it's in the net.
"It was very disappointing but we'll keep going. We believe in the players and they've got to roll up their sleeves, dig in and stop giving silly goals away. People don't have to work hard to score against us at the moment.
"We've has a bit of a knock this week losing to Coalville and today but we've got to bounce back. We know we've got ability in the changing room and the players to do that, we've just got to work hard. We needed to battle a bit more today just to turn things in our favour. Plus, I don't think we've had the decisions from the referee today a bit similar to the Coalville game but you can't blame the officials we've got to look at ourselves, me and Gary and the players to put it right.
"Royce Turville's booking was unbelievable. Their centre half has literally took Royce out and left him for dead and how that is not a sending off I can't believe it. Then the referee has got the cheek to book Royce for retaliation and Royce is flat out on the ground - unbelievable some of the decisions sometimes.
"Matt Roome was unavailable today and starts his suspension next week and Michael Nottingham has one more game so he'll miss next Saturday's game but after that he will be available so he'll be in for the Ashby game in the Coalville Cup a week on Tuesday.
"After a defeat I like to have another game to put under our belts and get it behind us, get another victory and move on. We knew it was going to be hard this season but we've got to roll up our sleeves and start battling to win games by the odd goal."
