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Saturday 1 September 2012

One touch, one goal. The perfect debut for Gredziak as Town ease to victory

NORTHALLERTON TOWN 3 HORDEN CW 0

NEW SIGNING Wayne Gredziak scored with his first touch to complete a routine Town victory over struggling Horden CW at the RGPS on Saturday.

Gredziak, signed from Durham City this week, came off the bench to replace top scorer Adam Emson in the 64th minute, and he sealed a third win in four matches with a first time finish from 20 yards seconds later.

"I was eager to come on and show the fans what I can do," said a delighted Gredziak. "When Chilli knocked the ball to me I just thought I'd hit it and it was a great feeling to see it end up in the back of the net."

But while the former Durham City striker took the plaudits, it merely rounded off a very good all-round Town performance. The only disappointment, in the end, was that the scoreline did not fully reflect their dominance of the match. It really could, and perhaps should, have finished 5 or 6-0.

Fanning's starting XI showed three changes from Monday's win at Darlington RA - Anthony Roberts replaced Stu Dunn at left back, Marcus Laing came in for the injured Ian Smurthwaite in midfield, while Stephen Butterworth replaced Col Anderson on the right.

And it was Roberts who opened the scoring inside two minutes. The Horden defence failed to clear a long throw from James Bowman and the big defender fired home on the turn from 6 yards, his first Town goal for more than seven years.

"I don't score many," said Roberts. "Although I did get one for Marske last season. I used to be a striker but I rarely get over the halfway line these days. It was nice to score but I am more pleased with the three points and the clean sheet," he said.

The early goal - the fourth time in their opening five league matches that Town have gone ahead inside ten minutes - led to a dominate display. It was nearly 2-0 six minutes later when Gav Parkin tried a cheeky chip from 18 yards, after another long throw from Match Day Programme profile star Bowman, but Horden keeper Chris Stoker was able to deny him.

Town did, however, double their advantage midway through the first half. Emson combined well with strike-partner Carl Chillingsworth before hitting a first time shot past Stoker from the edge of the penalty area - the 8th goal of an impressive season for the former Stokesley man.

Horden had arrived in North Yorkshire without a win to their name this season and Town were now in complete control. So much so, in fact, that they appeared to ease off as half time approached and James Briggs had to be alert to deny Matthew Nelson eight minutes before the break.

But the second half saw Town resume their earlier dominance. Parkin fired narrowly wide from 30 yards five minutes after the restart, before Emson was denied by Stoker following a neat shot on the turn moments later.

That was to be Emson's last meaningful contribution, however, as he was replaced by Gredziak soon after, and what an impact the substitute was to have.

He had been on the field less than a minute when Chillingsworth chested a long ball into his path, and Gredziak became an instant hit with fans and team-mates alike with a first time shot from 20 yards.
The Town faithful enjoying a good win

It was now just a matter of how many Town would score. Col Anderson, who had replaced Butterworth down the right, was torturing the young Horden left back Paul Johnson, but the visitors defence always seemed to scramble his crosses to safety.

Anderson, however, did have the ball in the net twenty minutes from time. Gredziak had seen his effort deflected behind for a corner but referee Michael Andrews had already blown for a pushing offence before Anderson turned home Parkin's delivery from close range.

But it really should have been 4-0 three minutes later. Gredziak did well down the right and his cross was perfect for the onrushing Chillingsworth at the far post. The veteran striker, however, who would normally stick these kind of chances away in his sleep, inexplicably headed over the bar from 5 yards with the goal at his mercy.

Town then saw a second effort ruled out when Gredziak tapped home fifteen minutes from time, after linking well with Anderson, but assistant referee Laura Murphy had already raised her flag for offside.

The final ten minutes saw a succession of Town chances, mostly made by or falling to Anderson. The former Richmond Town striker curled over the top after cutting inside Johnson, before seeing another effort kept out by Stoker. Meanwhile, Stephen Banks twice came close to his first Town goal after combining well with Anderson down the right.

Parkin was then denied a contender for goal of the season by the crossbar, when his strike from 35 yards beat Stoker but came back off the woodwork, before Anderson shot across across the face of the goal in the closing stages and it finished 3-0.

"It was a good performance," said Fanning. "We controlled most of the match but I was a little concerned we thought it was getting too comfortable before half time.

"We switched off for ten minutes or so after the second goal but we sorted it out at the break. The second half response was exactly what I wanted and we should have won more comfortably in the end."

Asked about the signing of Gredziak, Fanning said, "We are very pleased to have Wayne. He has played with Emson before and I know they can be a lethal combination, but he also linked extremely well with Chilli today. We have great options in attack now."

With Tuesday night's trip to Tow Law Town now postponed due to their involvement in the FA Vase, the Town attack will not be action again until next Saturday when they travel to North Shields.

NORTHALLERTON TOWN - Briggs, Banks, Roberts, Hickman, Winter, Parkin, Butterworth, Laing, Emson, Chillingsworth, Bowman. Subs - Dunn, Craggs, Cook, Anderson, Gredziak.

HORDEN CW - Stoker, Livingstone, Johnson, Brown, Evans, Watson, Nelson, O'Roidan, Wilkie, Atkinson, Brooke-Myers. Subs - Carruthers, Anderson, Robson, Lisle, Hughes.

REFEREE - M. Andrews.

ATTENDANCE: 103

3 comments:

  1. The lid is off our money cooking pot and players far and wide cam smell it, they are comming to us so dig deep.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Is col of to Newton Aycliffe ?

    ReplyDelete
  3. No my friend we have far more money than they have, he will stay.

    On a lighter note who are all the fat people.

    ReplyDelete