Matlock Town FC vs Marine AFC
Matlock Town FC
0The Proctor Cars Stadium
Northern Premier League
Marine AFC
1Match Report
MATLOCK TOWN O-1 MARINE
Hopes that joint interim managers Adam Yates and Mark Atkins would get off to a winning start floundered in the heavy conditions against a physically stronger Marine side in a scrappy encounter at the Proctor Cars Stadium on Saturday.
Clear cut chances were few and far between, Marine took theirs while Matlock couldn’t, the Gladiators cause not being helped by the 54th minute dismissal of Harry Wood for an aggressive challenge on Scott Butler. It brought about a minor melee after which Cannock referee Jamie Conde brandished the red card to more or less kill off any hope of a Matlock recovery.
Marine led from the 30th minute and the goal summed up the game in terms of it was a poor one to concede. Up to that point the Gladiators had dealt efficiently with the long throws from the left by Freddie Sass, but this time they failed to react quickly enough to the second ball and SOL SOLOMON punished them by netting from close range.
It was Marine’s first shot in anger, Matlock having had two decent efforts on goal by then. On 10 minutes Nathan Whiitehead’s fiercely struck effort after Wood had pulled the ball back from the right cannoned off a defender before John Johnston’s ball into the run of Tavonga Kuleya saw the latter’s shot from eighteen yards fizz narrowly wide.
Having looked fairly comfortable with what Marine had asked of them, to concede the goal was a bitter blow for the Gladiators but they should probably have been on level terms five minutes later when Scott Boden escaped down the left to find Johnston who shot timidly wide of the near post. A great chance to equalise therefore passed Matlock by.
The only other chance prior to half time was again from a Marine long throw, this time on the right, Saul Deeney coming to claim but being beaten to the ball by Chris Doyle whose header cleared the bar.
Matlock soon won a free kick after the break which Whitehead would have been annoyed that he failed to find the target with his header, the ball dropping wide.
Marine then broke quickly for Bobby Grant to do likewise before Wood’s dismissal angered both the home crowd and Atkins on the bench who received a yellow card.
A teasing Marine corner from the left was knocked off the line by Joe West, the match now being predominantly played in home territory as the visitors cleverly retained possession with Rick Bainbridge running the show in midfield.
The Gladiators made a double change on 59 minutes bringing on new signing Liam Hardy and Michael Williams for Boden and Connor Dimaio but it made little difference in terms of Marine dominating possession and quietening the home support in another excellent turnout, counted in at 1022.
Deeney pushed a low shot from Louis White around a post but Matlock rallied towards the end. A West free kick glanced off a Marine defender to flash narrowly past the far post before from another West set piece delivery, Williams hooked a volley goalwards but straight into the welcoming arms of goalkeeper Bobby Jones.
Plenty of fight but little in the terms of quality from Matlock who will reflect on one lapse at the back for their defeat. Wood can feel hard done to as he clearly won the ball but hard challenges are sadly a thing of the past, the Marine players’ and bench’s reaction clearly influencing the red card.
For Marine it was a fourth win and clean sheet in succession, Matlock’s poor run continuing. A win of any sort and however created is vital for them now.
MATLOCK TOWN: 1 Saul Deeney 2 Kornell McDonald 3 Joe West 4 Nathan Whitehead 5 Adam Yates 6 Ioan Evans 7 John Johnston (12 Curtis Durose 73) 8 Harry Wood 9 Scott Boden (15 Liam Hardy 59) 10 Connor Dimaio (16 Michael Williams 59) 11 Tavonga Kuleya Other subs: 14 Jack De Gruchy 17 Myles Wright
MARINE: 1 Bobby Jones 2 Scott Butler 3 Freddie Sass 4 Harvey Gregson (17 Liam Nolan 89) 5 Chris Doyle 6 Josh Wardle 7 Owen Windsor 8 Jack Bainbridge 9 Bobby Grant 10 Sol Solomon (12 Finlay Sinclair-Smith 76) 11 Louis White (16 Owen Robinson 81) Other subs: 14 Matty Waters 15 Jon Routledge
REFEREE: Jamie Conde (Stafford) ATTENDANCE: 1022 BEST GLADIATOR : Ioan Evans