Gorleston 1 v 2 Grays Athletic

A goal in each half from centre back Callum Leahy was enough for Grays to claim all three points on their latest trip to Suffolk and to get themselves firmly back in the playoff picture after recent setbacks.
The early exchanges had little to commend them apart from a neat move in the 5th minute when a back flick from Roman Campbell found Aron Gordon whose close-range shot was straight at home keeper, Jake Jessup. Sam Bantick then had a couple of chances but couldn’t find the killer finish.
Courtney Homans was finding acres of space down the right and was the regular out ball from Danny Sambridge but the key break came down the other flank. Marlon Agyakwa and Macaulay Joynes combined well and won a free kick out wide. Bantick drove the ball to the far post and there was Callum Leahy to head the ball back across goal and into the net. There was some confusion whether the ball was already over the line before defender, George Keys, helped the ball on, But Leahy was credited with making it 1-0 to the visitors.
As the half wore on, Gorleston won more possession but their finishing was illustrative of why they are struggling in the league this season. Nathan Stewart shot high and wide twice and before Liam Jackson rose highest in the box but also headed wide. In between Aron Gordon had further chances to extend Blues lead, including one lung-busting run the length of the pitch, but to no avail.
Half time: Gorleston 0 v 1 Grays Athletic
The second half followed the pattern of the first. And in true fashion, Grays’ second goal on 59 minutes was a straight repeat of the first. Sam Bantick was upended by George Keys out wide left and Bantick got up to take the free kick, which he planted straight onto Callum Leahy’s head, for a 2-0 lead.
Danny Sambridge was called into action for the first time soon after, with a regulation save from Lewis Johnston but then Blues started to dominate as the opposition tired.
Agyakwa shot straight at the keeper and Macaulay Joynes, who had a good game, created another for the Grays new man but he squared the ball rather than shooting. A Bantick corner fell to Callum Watts, who let fly from distance and the rebound fell to Roman Campbell, whose follow-up shot was saved by Jessup.
With a quarter of an hour left, Bantick had a double shot and was only denied by a last-ditch defensive header. The resulting corner was met by Lewis Clark, whose attempt on goal was deflected wide. Leahy then nearly had his hat-trick when his header from yet another Bantick cross was well saved low down by Jessup.
As the clock ticked past 90 minutes, Blues were nearly the architects of their own downfall. Having dominated the game, they allowed a Gorleston long free kick to cause panic in the defence and Connor Ingram was on hand to poke the ball home and raise the home side’s hope of snatching an unlikely point. And they almost did so, straight from the kick-off, when Grays were forced to hack the ball away in desperation to preserve their lead.
So, Grays get their promotion push back on track with a win that was far from beautifully delivered but the Blues fan didn’t care with the points in the bag. Attention now moves to next Saturday and the renewal of local rivalries with Tilbury.
Final score: Gorleston 1 v 2 Grays Athletic
Grays Ath: Sambridge, Homans, Joynes, R,Winn, L.Clark, Leahy, Gordon (Toussaint, 79), Watts, Bantick (Osei-Bobie, 89), Campbell, Agyakwa
Subs not used: Griek, Hahn