Matlock Town FC vs Gainsborough Trinity
Matlock Town FC
0The Proctor Cars Stadium
Northern Premier League
Gainsborough Trinity
4Match Report
MATLOCK TOWN 0-4 GAINSBOROUGH TRINITY
Any hope Matlock might have had of building on the excellent home victory over Guiseley three days earlier were destroyed within twenty one minutes of Tuesday night’s contest with in form Gainsborough.
Trinity surged into a 3-0 lead, and it was all of Matlock’s making, shoddy defensive work being punished and to make it worse, the visitors did not have to work too hard to secure the points very early on.
Declan Howe struck a first half hat-trick, completing it following a fine team move four minutes before the interval, Trinity’s other marksman being Dayle Southwell although that could easily have been recorded as an own goal.
The4 match got the go ahead at the fifth time of asking, even then heavy late afternoon rain might have put another stop to proceedings, Matlock were left reflecting that they would have been better off if that proved to be the case.
George Wilkinson replaced Kornell McDonald at right back with Ollie Clark coming in for the injured Nathan Whitehead in midfield. Matlock’s squad contained six former Trinity players which would have made the outcome even more sad for certain individuals.
Matlock were stroking the ball about with positivity in the opening minutes but fell behind in Trinity’s first foray forward after 5 minutes, the visitors earning a corner which Matlock made a hash of clearing , a headed flick on left HOWE with the simplest of tap-ins. Gainsborough had made hay from set pieces in the game in Lincolnshire last October, clearly they remembered Matlock’s problems in dealing with them.
Two minutes later Matlock might have levelled as Scott Boden flicked his effort against the crossbar with goalkeeper Josh Render well beaten before two probing crosses from the right by the hard working John Johnston flashed across the box. Johnston looked to be Matlock’s main hope of salvation, then showing poise in the Trinity box before his shot with the outside of his boot was saved low to his right by Render.
But Matlock again shot themselves in the foot on 18 minutes, again from a corner which they could not deal with. SOUTHWELL shot goalwards from beyond the far post, the ball bobbling in off a Matlock leg for another sloppy giveaway.
With the rain and hail pouring down, it was an uncomfortable night all round for the hosts who proceeded to hand Gainsborough an easy third goal when Ioan Evans tripped Joe Stacey for an obvious penalty, HOWE stroking the ball home with ease.
Now Trinity were comfortably knocking the ball about with Matlock looking off colour in nearly every department. Fraser Preston and Bailey Conway took a firm grip on midfield and Matlock looked set for a hiding, especially when a fine team move which cut through Matlock like a knife through butter saw them extend their lead further four minutes before the break, HOWE slipping a calm finish past Saul Deeney.
A shot from Curtis Durose flew narrowly high and wide before the half time whistle, Matlock being booed as they trudged dejectedly to the dressing room.
Thankfully from the home viewpoint, there would be no further scoring by Trinity in a more competitive second period but the damage had been well and truly done. A double substitution by Mark Atkins ten minutes in with Boden and Clark being withdrawn for Connor Dimaio and Nat Crofts made a negligible difference but Trinity were in cruise control.
There was a glimpse of a response when Crofts’ back heel was cleared off the line and Tavonga Kuleya’s follow up was blocked a foot or so further forward but Gainsborough finished strongly and Matlock had to defend desperately at times, including a goal line clearance by Joe West denied Howe a fourth goal and Gainsborough a nap hand.
The 480 brave souls who braved a dirty night got an almost as dirty Matlock performance with no positives. Major surgery is needed over the summer , the season cannot end quickly enough.
MATLOCK TOWN: 1 Saul Deeney 2 George Wilkinson 3 Joe West 4 Ollie Clark (15 Connor Dimaio 55) 5 Adam Yates 6 Ioan Evans 7 John Johnston 8 Curtis Durose 9 scott Boden (14 Nat Crofts 55) 10 Liam Hardy 11 Tavonga Kuleya Other subs: 12 Kornell McDonald 16 Andrew Wright 19 Myles Wright
GAINSBOROUGH TRINITY: 1 Josh Renders 2 George Hornshaw (12 Nat Wallace 76) 3 Ashley Jackson 4 Bailey Conway 5 Hamish Douglas 6 Dylan Cogill 7 Joe Stacey 8 Bobby Johnson 9 Dayle Southwell (16 Connor Shanks 69) 10 Declan Howe 11 Fraser Preston (15 Kyle Simpson 82) Other subs: 14 Jack Moore-Billam 17 Dylan Wharton
REFEREE: Sam Clayton (Sheffield) ATTENDANCE: 480 BEST GLADIATOR: John Johnston