STOURPORT SWIFTS 4-1 GRESLEY ROVERS: THE MATCH REPORT & IMAGES...

 Gresley’s Grisly Evening Wrecked By Clinical Swifts, Beer Sloshing, Altercating Fans & Driving Second Period Rain…

Stourport Swifts 4-1 Gresley Rovers

Where to start… OK, following 24 minutes or so of fairly tense, often helter-skelter skirmishing, Rovers netted a slick goal, created by Joe Haines and scored by skipper Paul Sullivan. Within minutes however, they were 3-1 behind to a brace by Joe Phillips and a James Timmins header, and as the interval drew near, it had become clear that their third spot in the league table was under severe threat from their closest challengers. And then it rained…

WOLLACOTT CHECKS THE COLOUR OF THE REF'S CYCLING SHORTS...

Another goal by Stourport’s Bailey Fuller early in the second period effectively ended the speculation about where the three points would go, although in truth, the visitors later tested home ‘keeper Dom Richards several times and replacement Jack Storer displayed the kind of offensive play that his team had failed to produce earlier in the contest. Even a very late expulsion into the sin-bin for home forward Jack Watts didn’t really affect the game much and the hosts jumped above their guests in the divisional standings by a point, albeit having played a game more.

A SWIFT CELEBRATION...

Both teams missed chances early on in the match, with Watts chipping too high for Swifts and then Rovers’ full-back Junior Smikle lifting a fine opportunity from 12 yards over the target from Sullivan’s assist. Watts also drilled a shot into the side-netting and saw a left-side delivery deflected away for a corner, whilst team-mate Drew Canavan had a shot spilled by Rovers’ goalie Joe Fryatt. After Gresley’s David Kolodynski had an effort blocked by Stourport, a neat lifted pass by Haines freed Sullivan in the left side of the penalty-box and his calm, low right-booter past the advancing Richards rolled into the right side of goal. Home skipper Ryan Wollacott was then cautioned for a rough foul on Kolodynski in the build-up to the goal… 

GOAL FOR GRESLEY...

And suddenly a drum began to beat, for more folks had appeared behind that goal and loud chanting began about these late arrivals ‘being Gresley’ and that they would 'do what they want’, as well as balancing pints of beer purchased from the bar. A bus had apparently broken down en route from Gresley and the ‘fans’ had thus turned up late (with or without masks on the bus, I wonder?) They had then walked into Walshes Meadow free, I believe, as the gateman was by then helping in the bar. Their transport had been left outside to cause problems for exiting vehicles after 9.30pm…

SLEV THE IMPALER ENJOYS THE ADULATION...

The noise made by the Gresley fellows was atmospheric, no doubt about it and also laudable, for their team led, until, er, they self-destructed in a matter of minutes. A set-piece was cleared by Rovers but James Hill struck a low 19 yard shot which Phillips nudged on inside the 6 yard box, only for Louis Briscoe (I think) to fall and block the ball, but naturally, Phillips gobbled up the rebound into the right corner of the net with a rising thump. 

MISS BY WATTS...

Goal two stemmed from a Hill free-kick following a poor challenge by the otherwise impressive Haines, who, unlike Wollacott earlier, escaped a booking. Canavan collected the ball on the right side of the penalty-box, clipped a cross in and there was Timmins to ram a very close range header gleefully into the net. Poor defending by Gresley certainly, but soon a foul by Kyle Batchelor earned him a caution, which offered the busy, belligerent, bristling Martin Slevin the chance to clip in a free-kick delivery from inside-left. It was a fine assist but once Phillips had anticipated the trajectory and left marker Haines amongst a not at all socially distanced group of players, the striker’s leaning header from a few yards out was accurate, even though from where I sat, it had looked like a left-foot shot… Don’t ask…

HARRISON & WATTS...

Gresley’s defensive line-up of Alby Lansdowne, Mason Frizelle and Lucas Harrison had found themselves susceptible wide, on Fuller’s flank especially and thus the visitors had looked less than comfortable on occasions. Only Sullivan seemed to be able to make offensive tracks for the guests, although Haines was usually involved in some way and often inspired some confidence. Fuller and Watts had provided threat at times for Stourport, striker Phillips had poached a brace and Hill but especially Slevin had been prominent. And why was Slevin winning headers again?

SWIFTS FIND THE MARK...

LATE FREE-KICK BY STORER...

The interval was reached, it was raining and it became clear that the contingent of Gresley fans would walk along the front of the grandstand and take up standing positions along the touchline rail, behind a nervous looking linesman. Obviously though, this took a while, as beer was being purchased and indeed, one group of five blokes who passed by carried I think eleven pints between them… 

WATTS: BINNED LATE, AS A SINNER...

KOLODYNSKI (11): USUALLY SCORES WHEN I AM ABOUT...

HAINES STRIDES TO FIND OUT THAT HE IS NOT GOING TO BE BOOKED...

And then the banner arrived, handled by a slim chap wearing an England football top, I’m sure. He was pissed. He was also Gresley and he could do what he wanted, clearly. He attached the banner to the top of an advertising hoarding and from then on he caused a good amount of trouble. It rained and several Rovers fans sensibly moved into the grandstand, not socially distanced at all and my mind went back to Hinckley’s match at Barwell last week, where every other row in the grandstand was out of bounds and there were prohibitive crosses on two seats together, then one free to sit on, then two more out of bounds seats, and so on… It all became so daft during the second period at Walshes Meadow that I actually forgot all about the pandemic…

WATTS' CHIP FLIES TOO HIGH...

HAINES: WORDS FROM THE REF...

So, anyway, with the beer being carried by jocular, jostling chaps and the drum being beaten, the game restarted, although it was unlikely that some of those Gresley fans saw much of it at that point. A low Haines shot from downtown passed wide of the right stick but suddenly the hosts raced clear on the right, where the unmarked Fuller took possession from Watts’ flick and lifted a lovely chipped shot over the helpless Fryatt and into the far corner of the net. With the hassle in the seats before me, I was late pressing ‘play’ on the camera and thus videoed too low but hopefully enough of the winger’s fine strike has been captured…

BATCHELOR IS CAUTIONED & SLEV THE IMPALER WAITS TO ASSIST FOR GOAL 3...

STORER: LOOKED DANGEROUS...

The remaining portion of the match saw Gresley battle even harder, as a result of which they made a number of good chances to shoot but subsequently that short period of defensive frailty before half-time had caused too much damage. Sullivan cut inside from the left twice but although his first shot was weak and wide, his second flew just past the right post. He drove into the side netting too and in one attack, he, Storer and then Batchelor all had shots blocked in a packed penalty-box. Batchelor also forced Richards to dive and beat out a shot, although the same player’s rebound was ugly and way too high. Midfielder Danny Holmes wasted a shot late on, which rose well over the target but credit to Storer, for his efforts at goal were all worthy ones.

FULLER (7): WOULD SCORE WITH A FINE CHIP...

SLEV THE IMPALER'S FREE-KICK WOULD BE SAVED BY FRYATT...

He forced a low clutching save from Richards, had another deflected for a corner, another tipped over the crossbeam by Richards and finally powered in a 25 yard free-kick which the gloveman beat out.

WATTS TAKES BOTH KNEES...
(IS THAT RIGHT?)

WOLLACOTT RECEIVED A YELLOW CARD FOR THIS FOUL...

It was not one-way traffic however, for although Swifts were 4-1 ahead, their approach was fairly sensible and they played more as a counter-attacking outfit. Watts nearly got in a shot at the left upright, saw another drive deflected to Fryatt, then Fuller played a one-two with him but the winger’s low delivery from the right byeline passed across the goalmouth untouched. Watts’ ill judged comments to the referee saw him carded as a sinner and binned for the final ten minutes…

GOAL FOR FULLER...

GOAL FOR TIMMINS...

Phillips nodded a left-side centre over the target and then curled a decent effort past the right stick; Hill drove wide from 25 yards, a Canavan ‘curler’ was deflected wide of the right vertical and a 20 yard Slevin free-kick flew straight into Fryatt’s midriff. Slevin was then lauded by the Stourport youngsters behind his own goal when he was catapulted to the ground by an attempted overhead-kick from an opponent very late in the match and he responded by springing to his feet like a spring lamb but with a clenched and raised fist…

HOW TO HOLD THE THROW...

SET-PIECE FOR SWIFTS...

Talking of raised fists…

Quite suddenly, Bannerman shattered the already rowdy and beery atmosphere just below me in the grandstand. A young couple was forced to shift, for brews flew like sea over Mousehole’s harbour wall, threatening an unwelcome shower for us all, distanced or not… Bannerman had annoyed a fellow Gresley fan and the angered guy went berserk at the irritating, malingering, inebriated pain in the arse… The language was really bad and the threats very real, which must have caused the linesman some discomfort just metres away, but mainly it surely caused lashings of acute embarrassment for any decent  Rovers followers. One elderly guy appeared to try to calm things down but although other somewhat pissed guys attempted to drag the rain and booze-soaked Bannerman away, he kept returning like an unwelcome boomerang and I thought that he would eventually nag himself into a few days at A&E with several broken facial bones. 

SLEV THE IMPALER HAS JUST BEEN FOULED...

THE WOLLACOTT CAUTION...

The other bloke was so angry that others found calming him down a real task and some of the exchanges between him and Bannerman can be heard on the video highlights of the match. I believe the noise and drinking carried on after the match in the bar too… 

THE DRUM REMAINS HIDDEN, THE BANNER TOO...

Who’d be a coach driver, eh?  

So, Swifts claimed the points, Richards, Wollacott and Timmins, supported by Harrison Yates and Jim Hanson saw to that and with Hill and Slevin prowling in midfield, the visitors were only really dangerous during the latter stages and they had Storer to thank for that… 

And top scorer Danny Munday, with 10 this season, was on the bench…

The BBC News was just finishing on TV when I got home and I learned that there is, after all, still a dangerous pandemic about… A pity the information hasn’t reached some parts of Gresley…

TEAMS:

STOURPORT SWIFTS:

DOM RICHARDS, HARRISON YATES,JIM HANSON, JAMES HILL, JAMES TIMMINS, RYAN WOLLACOTT (CAPT), BAILEY FULLER, MARTIN SLEVIN, JOE PHILLIPS, JACK WATTS, DREW CANAVAN.

SUBS:

JOE HANSON, MARK DANKS, BRAD PHILLIPS, NICK MACPHERSON, JOHNNY JOHNSTON.

GRESLEY ROVERS:

JOE FRYATT, JUNIOR SMIKLE, LUCAS HARRISON, KYLE BATCHELOR, ALBY LANSDOWNE, MASON FRIZELLE, JOE HAINES, DANNY HOLMES, LOUIS BRISCOE, PAUL SULLIVAN (CAPT), DAVID KOLODYNSKI.

SUBS:

ASH BROWN, DANNY MUNDAY, CONNOR WARD, JAKE MCINTOSH, JACK STORER.