Redbridge 0 Grays Athletic 3 (Carthium Cup - Preliminary Round)
Tue, October 5, 2004. Kick off: 7:45 PM
STRONG RESPONSE BY BLUES by Carol Smith-Allen and Alan Fulbrook
Blues put the disappointment of their early exit from the FA Cup behind them to give a much improved performance against Redbridge FC in this Conference Cup tie. Showing more commitment and ability than has been evident recently, they earned themselves a 3 nil victory over their Essex neighbours, and a place in the next round.
Right from the start it was one-way traffic, with Blues having the majority of possession and controlling the play. Gary Hooper made his first start of the season, and new boy Ricky Dobson made his first appearance in defence for Grays, but Blues were still missing the experienced Eddie Youds plus Mitchell Cole and Liam George through injury.
With Blues on the offensive, early chances fell to Griffiths and Powell. Redbridge then came close on 18 minutes when Ben Lewis’ header hit the upright, but Blue’s deservedly opened the scoring on 24 minutes; Griffiths got on the end of a corner, and managed to prod the ball home through the mass of players in the crowded box.
Blues continued to apply pressure, with Redbridge defending deeply and just looking for a quick break. Just before the interval Griffiths thought he had got a second goal, but his header was disallowed for a foul on Redbridge keeper David Bull.
The second-half started as the first had finished with Blues in attacking mode, and Powell came close on 50 minutes, but saw his effort go narrowly wide. However, five minutes later Hooper’s cross found Griffiths on the edge of the box and he duly despatched the ball into the back of the net.
Despite an excellent effort by Redbridge’s Glenn Poole on 59 minutes which produced a superb save from Carl Emberson, the writing appeared to be on the wall, as Redbridge showed little sign of salvaging something from this match.
After a few near misses, with Griffiths at the heart of things, Blue’s finally wrapped the game up. Dean Brennan slipped the ball to skipper Stuart Thurgood whose shot was deflected into the path of Powell, who found the net with a cheeky back-heel.
A much needed good all-round team display by Blues, including an outstanding performance by Leroy Griffiths, which hopefully will boost confidence ready for the clash with bottom of the table Welling on Saturday.
Teams:-
Redbridge FC:- Bull, Stephens, Francis, Perkins, Halle, Ejoumaint, Fiddes, McLeod, Lewis, Poole, Murray Subs:- Neville, Rafis, Elbi (66 mins), Plummer, Dinnan (82 mins for Francis)
Grays Athletic:- Emberson, Bruce, Nutter, Robinson, Dobson, Thurgood, Brennan, Hooper, Griffiths, Powell, Olayinka Subs:-Hayzelden, Overland, Williams (80 mins for Bruce), Carthy, Bradshaw (74 mins for Hooper)
Referee:- Mr. A. Mason
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