Halifax Town 0 Grays Athletic 0 (Live on Setanta Sports)
Tue, October 16, 2007. Kick off: 7:45 PM
Match Report By Martin Candler
After a difficult week when first team coach Jimmy Dack was sacked and four players transfer-listed, Grays arrived at the Shay needing to arrest their alarming slide down the table. For their part, Halifax are experiencing severe financial problems and in their starting line-up several key players were absent through injury or suspension. Therefore it came as no real surprise that the game was an edgy, scrappy affair, played out in an eerily quiet atmosphere more akin to a library than a football ground! Grays have the best defensive record in the League and apart from the closing minutes, they looked compact and resolute. As has been the case all season the glaring deficiency is in their inability to take their chances; this match proved no exception.
Despite not being at his very best, skipper Stuart Thurgood still drove his team on and particularly in the second half looked the more likely to break the deaddlock. Ernie Cooksey saw his first half shot skim past the post before in the 34th minute the best chance of the match fell to Karl Murray. A clever pass from Ben Watson set Dennis Oli free on the right and his deep cross found Cooksey whose header across goal was parried by home custodian, Adam Legzdin to his right hand side, where Murray, leaning back, somehow managed to scoop the ball over the bar from close in.
Apart from a miss from Steve Torpey, Halifax rarely troubled the Blues defence, ably led yet again by the commanding Jon Ashton and even Daryl Taylor‘s pacy runs were shepherded away to safety.
In the second half Grays pushed forward and took the game to their hosts. Around the 55th minute, first Cooksey and then Danny Kedwell had chances but were denied. Late in the game, Simon Downer visibly tiring in his first outing of the season, was replaced by Seku Kamara and Torpey began to find space on the left and set up two chances for sub Darryl Stamp, who finished weakly on both occasions. Oli then made a thrilling run from near the half-way line but, in keeping with most of the evening‘s attacking efforts, he blazed over the bar.
At the final whistle, it was Grays who had the most to celebrate from a frustrating night; a precious away point gained from a side unbeaten at home since February.
Grays Athletic: Knowles, Stuart, Downer (Kamara 79), Ashton, Gross, Thurgood, Murray, Cooksey, Oli, Watson (O'Connor 85), Kedwell.
Subs Not Used: Flitney, Hearn, Grant.
Att: 1104
Ref: K Evans (Lancashire).
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