Gresley FC vs Nuneaton Griff
Gresley Youth 4 - 2 Nuneaton Griff
On a cold and frosty night at the Moat Ground, Gresley Youth finally achieved their first win of the season with a 4-2 success against Nuneaton Griff, in a match played at 100mph that proved to be both highly entertaining and exasperating at the same time.
Certainly Gresley have played better than this and lost, but you could not fault the effort they put in and the confidence flowed throughout the team in the final twenty minutes as they began to overpower their visitors.
Defences were on top in the early stages of the match with the final ball lacking for both teams and nobody really getting a grip on the midfield.
The breakthrough came in the 27th. minute as Josh Guest rose above a crowded penalty area to head in from a Josh Pearson free-kick, an improvement on his practice effort just before which he had put wide.
Two minutes later and Gresley doubled their lead when Benny Watson amazed his team-mates and the spectators, and possibly surprised even himself, as he smashed a thirty-yarder past the visiting keeper and into the roof of the net.
The visitors were then allowed back into the match as Gresley loosened their grip slightly, Luke Hemingway having to dash off his line to block one attack, although to be truthful Nuneaton were not offering very much up front with the home defence able to cope fairly comfortably and see out the first half.
Just after the break Gresley missed a golden opportunity to stretch their lead when a Jamie Davies cross was met by Luke Watts in front of the goal only to see Nuneaton's stopper, Nick Martin, pull off a remarkable double save.
This shook the away team into action and a few minutes later their number nine, Jake Wilson, was allowed to wander across the edge of the Gresley area before turning and rifling his shot past Hemingway to reduce the deficit.
Davies then pounced on a defensive error to advance on goal, only to put his shot straight at the keeper, before increased pressure resulted in him restoring Gresley's two goal advantage with a low drive into the far corner, following on from his turn and shot just over the bar and a long-range effort from Watts going wide.
Back came Nuneaton and substitute Chris Mitchell had only just entered the fray when he found himself in on goal only to have his shot blocked by the home keeper, Hemingway having no chance five minutes later however, as Wilson fastened on to a through ball and lobbed the ball over him into an empty net.
Pearson then produced a saving tackle to prevent further damage and seven minutes before the end came the defining moment of the match as Davies was brought down just inside the Nuneaton area.
The referee initially waved play on but was alerted to the offence by his flag-waving assistant who indicated it was a penalty and the spot kick was confidently despatched into the bottom corner by Jake Sharpe.
To their credit Nuneaton refused to wave the white flag, Johnny Bowen having his effort from 25 yards pushed round the post by the home keeper.
However, Gresley were now rampant and attacked at will, Davies having a shot saved, with Callum McBride firing over from the resultant corner and Tom Frewtrell's strike held by the busy Martin just before the final whistle.
Goals: Gresley: Guest 27, Watson 29, Davies 70, Sharpe (pen) 83. Nuneaton: Wilson 50, 78.
Gresley: Hemingway 7, Curtis 6, Metcalfe 6, Pearson 7, Guest 7, Watson 6 (Sharpe 56 6), Watts 6 (Frewtrell 80 5), Simpson 6, McBride 6, Davies 7, Francis 6. Subs not used: Jones, Morton, Goodall.
Nuneaton: Martin, McIver, Ensor, Deacon (Blacker 46), Baxter, Pritchard, Mulhern (Mitchell 70), Palfreyman, Wilson, Harrison (Purkiss 66), Bowen.
