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Unibond League Division One
Kidsgrove Athletic 3, Bridlington Town 2
A harsh result for the seasiders, who had looked good value for their 1-0
half-time lead. The match hinged on a five-minute spell in the middle of a
torrential downpour in the second period, when Town conceded an equaliser,
missed a penalty which would have seen them instantly retake the lead, and
then were undone by the uneven, rain-sodden surface, the wildly bobbling
ball gifting the home side a second, and there was to be no way back.
A cagey opening to the game brought little real goalmouth action, although
the home striker Matt Rhead was doing his best to infuriate the Town fans
with a series of acrobatic tumbles when challenged for the ball. Town
centre-back Carl Giblin received a painful looking knock on the ankle, and
was hobbling for several minutes, but that didn’t prevent him chasing
down
Rhead as the frontman burst into the Town box, and expertly shepherding him
away from goal.
With new signing Anthony Bowsley pulling the strings in midfield, and
pairing of Ben Eastwood and Ali Benson again looking a real threat in
attack, Town carved out a number of good chances as Benson went close on 25
minutes, and Eastwood sent a 20-yarder narrowly over the bar. Town took the
lead on 42 minutes with a gem of a goal. Bowsley found space on the right
flank to deliver an outswinging cross, and winger Danny Buttle, perfectly
positioned on the left angle of the 18-yard box, lashed a stunning
first-time volley high into the top corner past a helpless Rob Powner. Even
the home fans applauded the strike.
The home side upped the pace after the break, and caught Town cold with an
equaliser on 56 minutes. A square ball reached Simon Robinson, and he cut
infield on the edge of the 18-yard box to send a peach of a shot past Gavin
Kelly into the far corner. Town attacked straight from the restart, and the
marauding Benson burst clear only to be felled inside the penalty area by
Powner. Eastwood stepped up to take the spot-kick but lashed his shot wide,
and the home side breathed again. With the rain bucketing down, the surface
was becoming treacherous, and this resulted in Kidsgrove’s second on
60
minutes. What looked a speculative cross in the direction of Rhead should
have been a simple clearance job for Town full-back Chris Hyam, but the ball
took off from a divot over his boot and presented the striker with a simple
chance from 12 yards from which he made no mistake.
Town midfielder Wayne Wallace had a good chance to bring Town back into the
game minutes later, but his powerful header was well held by Powner. With
legs tiring in the mud, Kidsgrove struck the killer blow with a lightning
counter attack on 80 minutes. Substitute Dan Biegus raced clear to crack in
a shot that cannoned off the bar, and Rhead was first to the loose ball to
guide it past Kelly for his side’s third. The lively Buttle gave Town
hope
in injury time with his first goal for the club, sending in a low drive from
outside the area that eluded everyone and crept past an unsighted Powner at
the far post, but time ran out for the unlucky Seasiders as they went in
search of the point.