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| January 1999 Match Reports | |
Saturday 30th January 1999 Garner - in the groove again Dr. Martens League Premier Division: Grantham Town 2 Burton Albion 3 The wide-open spaces of the South Kesteven Stadium proved once again a happy hunting ground for Nigel Clough on Saturday, as the Brewers boss inspired his team to victory there for the second time this season. This was a most welcome three points for the Brewers, salvaging something from a January which went rapidly downhill after the New Years Day victory at Gresley. And who should spearhead this return to form but Andy Garner - the veteran striker finding the scoresheet for the first time since September, not once but twice, as Albion fought back to recover from the worst possible start. Grantham were running the show early on and in-form Nick Goodwin - offered a new contract by Nigel Clough last week - was forced to make two fine saves while some supporters were still passing through the turnstiles, before Chris Cleaver - making his debut for the Gingerbreads - finally turned the home pressure into a goal on seven minutes - firing in from 15 yards. The lead didn't last long, however, and within ten minutes the Brewers were level, David Holmes threading the ball through for Andy Garner to steer a shot past Gary Germaine - Garner's first goal since the 5-3 thriller against Gloucester way back in September - the first match after John Barton's sacking. Grantham never really recovered their blistering early form after this, and the Brewers had the best chances of the half - Brendan Hackett - looking dangerous again down the left flank - firing in a low shot which tested Germaine. David Holmes also brought a save out of the Grantham keeper, and Andy Garner's free-kick almost caused problems at the far post. Garner it was who put the Brewers in front on 52 minutes. Germaine failed to hold Brendan Hackett's inswinging corner, and Andy Garner emerged through a crowd of defenders to stab home form close range. When Darren Gwyther levelled for Grantham nine minutes later, Brewers fans could be excused for thinking their chance had gone, but Albion were made of sterner stuff. David Holmes' 71st minute shot was deflected over, and from the corner - again swung in with deadly accuracy by Hackett - Tony Marsden arrived to nod in a glancing header to take all three points from his old club. The Brewers are in action again this Tuesday evening (Kick-Off 7.45 pm) when Atherstone United are the visitors to Eton Park in a Dr. Martens Cup second round replay. The prize for the winners - a "glamour tie" against Bilston Town in Round Three. Two home league ties follow, against Salisbury City this coming Saturday, 6th February, and Bath City on 13th February (both kick-off 3pm).
Tuesday 26th January 1999 Third time unlucky for Brewers FA Umbro Trophy Third Round: Altrincham 1 Burton Albion 0 Altrincham's ace-marksman Leroy Chambers put Albion out of the FA Trophy last night, as the swamp-like Moss Lane pitch finally passed inspection at the third attempt. The highly-rated striker earned his team a trip to Aldershot Town in Round Four courtesy of a blistering 74th minute shot, just as an Eton Park replay looked on the cards. Nigel Clough had reverted to a 4-4-2 formation, with Andy Garner returning to partner David Holmes upfront, but the impotence of the Brewers' forward line was there for all to see. A spirited performance from Burton against the Unibond League leaders couldn't hide the lack of firepower in their own attack, for despite enjoying more than their fair share of posession, Albion never really looked like scoring, and all the best chances of the first half fell to Altrincham. Ricky Harris had a header pushed against the woodwork by Nick Goodwin on 24 minutes, and the Albion keeper was in fine form again on 37 minutes, diving to parry Harris's 25-yard shot, to preserve the goalless scoreline at half-time. Altrincham stepped up a gear after the interval, and with the Albion defence working overtime, Mark Blount twice had to clear off the line, Goodwin saved from Paul Robertson and Harris tamely put his shot wide in front of a gaping net from Robertson's pass. At the other end a David Holmes effort was turned away by Adams, but the killer punch for Albion came on 74 minutes, with a blitzkreig break from the home side. Leroy Chambers, receiving a pass from Mark Ward, slipped his markers and gave Goodwin no chance with a bullet-like shot into the roof of the net. How Albion could do with a player like Chambers - in red hot form after putting four past Whitby Town on Saturday, and watched from the stands last night by a posse of scouts. Urged on by the fans who'd made the trip North for the second time in just over a week, on a freezing Monday night, the Brewers fought bravely to try and scramble an equalizer, but the closest they came was when Nigel Clough set up Andy Garner, who's shot rolled agonizingly wide of the post. And when Darren Stride fired a good chance from inside the box hopelessly over the stand roof into Golf Road, you knew it wasn't going to be their night. A battle to avoid relegation, and a possible divertion in the Dr. Martens League Cup is all Albion have to look forward to between now and May. After that Mr. Clough will surely want to whip out his chequebook to bring new blood into a side which has once again failed to live up to expectations. One bright spot of an otherwise depressing night was when the whistle-happy referee crashed into an Altrincham player - sending both tumbling to the ground and requiring treatment. Well on a night like this you've got to find something to smile about haven't you??
Saturday 23rd January 1999 It's the late, late Linnets show Dr. Martens League Premier Division: Burton Albion 0 King's Lynn 1 An uncharacteristic slip from skipper Mark Blount deep into injury time handed bottom club King's Lynn three precious points in their battle for Premier Division survival, and plunged Albion deeper into the mire themselves. This was the Brewers' third successive home defeat, and they now sit precariously just one place above the drop zone. Albion had the chances to kill off the game in the second half, but were denied time and again by visiting keeper Chuck Martini. He may sound more like a porn star than a footballer, but his goalkeeping kept the Linnets in this game. The first half was a dour affair, with neither side creating any chances of note. Former Gresley-ite Gary Mills went down in the box from a challenge by Grocutt, but nothing was given, and Mark Blount carelessly conceded posession to Allen in a dangerous position, but recovered to block the shot. Nigel Clough had chosen to rest Darren Stride, Craig Smith and Brendan Hackett - all of whom took knocks at Atherstone in midweek, in advance of Monday's delayed FA Trophy trip to Altrincham, and there was no sign of the swift passing and movement which so impressed Ron Bradbury at Sheepy Road on Wednesday. The second-half was following a similar pattern, and only the appearance of Andy Garner as substitute on 58 minutes brought a spark of life to the game. David Holmes now had someone to play off upfront, and the pair were soon carving out chances. On 74 minutes, the Brewers had their first real threatening move of the game, when Garner and Holmes' swift passing movement ended with the latter forcing Martini to make a save. A similar move minutes later saw Martini parry Mark Blount's shot, and recover well to deny Garner from close range. Then ten minutes from time, the Linnets keeper produced his best save of all, reacting well to block a Garner effort through a crowded penalty area. At the other end, Lynn came close themselves, but Nick Goodwin seemed to have salvaged a point for the Brewers, with a save from substitute McGinty. If only! Three minutes into injury time, Martini started the move which would bag all three points for the Norfolk side. His long ball up field was hopelessly misjudged by Blount, and Dave Puttnam sneaked in behind him, to slot the ball in past Goodwin. Still think we're too good to go down??
Saturday 9th January 1999 Ten-man Terras' "smash 'n' grab" raid Dr. Martens League Premier Division: Burton Albion 1 Weymouth 2 Weymouth grabbed all three points from this mid-table Dr. Martens League clash at Eton Park, despite spending more than an hour of it with only ten men, after defender Simon Browne was sent off. The Brewers dominated the match but were unable to turn their possession into goals, and slip to their sixth home defeat of the season. Nigel Clough had to reshuffle his pack for this game after Darren Grocutt succumbed to the flu bug sweeping much of the nation. All-rounder Craig Smith, who started the season as a striker and has recently impressed in midfield, today took over from Grocutt in the heart of defence. Pat Lyons returned to the midfield, and Wayne Sutton and Gary Crosby made the substitutes bench. The Brewers were out of the traps fast, and could have been ahead inside the first quarter of an hour. David Holmes' glancing header from Webster's cross sailed inches wide of the post, and Tony Marsden wasted a glorious opportunity to score with only the keeper to beat, having robbed Powell on the edge of the box. Mark Blount also saw a header cleared off the line as Weymouth were forced to defend in depth. Things were looking bleak for the Terras when Simon Browne was shown the red card for denying Holmes a goalscoring opportunity just outside the penalty area, but amazingly it was the visitors who took the lead, on the stroke of half time. A rare stray ball from Nigel Clough conceded possession to Weymouth, and from the resulting counter-attack Craig Mansell converted Hutchinson's cross in from the right. Albion continued to control the game after the interval as they pushed for an equaliser. David Holmes headed just wide again on 56 minutes, and three minutes later Darren Stride stooped low to head Aaron Webster's cross over the line from close range. The Brewers turned up the heat now, winning a series of corners with Steve Spooner and Mark Blount coming close with headed chances, and when Nigel Clough almost scored a sensational first Albion goal, volleying inches wide of Myers' right hand post, it seemed only a matter of time before a goal would come. It did, but not for Albion. The January sun having set, the sky above Eton Park was turning a nice shade of terracotta, and it was completely out of the blue that Weymouth snatched a winning goal on 78 minutes. Craig Mansell made the most of a challenge on him by Blount, and from the resulting free-kick Ian Hutchinson's perfectly flighted effort from 18 yards curved round the wall and into the gap left by Nick Goodwin. Clough brought on an attacker - Andy Garner - for a defender - Michael Allsopp - in a last gasp attempt to salvage something from the game, but the Terras' defence held firm. A swift, intricate passing move between Garner and Holmes, ending in Blount's shot past the post, was the nearest they got, and Brewers' player-assistant Gary Crosby couldn't conjur up anything in his seven minutes on the field. Weymouth and their small band of followers make the long back to Dorset happy, whilst the Brewers ponder a match they really would have liked to have won, ahead of next week's crucial FA Trophy trip to Altrincham.
Sunday 3rd January 1999 Pilgrims progress, Brewers stumble Dr. Martens League Premier Division: Burton Albion 0 Boston United 2 The Brewers' hopes of completing a one hundred percent record over the festive period were brought to an end on Sunday, as Boston United completed the league double over Nigel Clough's team. Albion have improved rapidly since the Pilgrims put four past them at York Street a month ago, but here they simply ran out of steam, as the effects of four games in eight days finally took it's toll. A strong defence has been the cornerstone of Clough's Eton Park revival, but here they found themselves behind after just three hair-raising minutes - Gary Childs making the most of slapshod defending from Burton to drill home from fifteen yards. Boston could have added to their tally, with Gary Mason wasting a clearcut chance, and Brewers' defender Steve Spooner scrambling the ball off the line after Matt Carmichael's shot came back off the post. Albion recovered from this early shock to the system to carve out their fair share of possesion as the half progressed. Tony Marsden had clipped the crossbar with a speculative effort from long range, and David Holmes' shot went just wide of the post, but Boston's well organised defence was letting precious little through. Early in the second half Dave Venables had the ball in the net for Boston, but his effort was disallowed for offside. The visitors continued to threaten Nick Goodwin's goal with a string of corners, and when Albion could break away they lacked the pace and strength to find a way through to goal. Craig Smith was moved alongside Holmes upfront, and Ruben Francis brought on seven minutes from time to bolster the attack further, but though players such as Darren Stride continued to give one hundred percent, the Brewers tiredness of mind more than anything else meant that too often a promising move would break down to nothing. Nick Goodwin produced a "Gordon Banks"-style save from Childs two minutes from time, but still Boston were destined to grab the goal their display merited, albeit in controversial circumstances. Four minutes into stoppage time, Gary Walters seemed yards offside when he chased onto a long ball out of defence, but the linesman's flag stayed down. Forced wide by the keeper, he crossed for substitute Paul Watts to head home. The home fans weren't happy, nor had they been with the officials all through this game, but they could have no complaints about the result as Albion were beaten by an impressive Boston side who may still have something to say in the title race this season.
Friday 1st January 1999 Dream double as Brewers storm into '99 Dr. Martens League Premier Division: Gresley Rovers 0 Burton Albion 2 Albion carried on in 1999 where they left off in '98, with another three points to continue their rapid ascent of the Dr. Martens League. Four wins in a row now for Nigel Clough's team, who complete the league double over their South Derbyshire rivals without really having to break sweat. Gresley boss Garry Birtles re-shuffled his pack, dropping three of the names who started at Eton Park on Boxing Day, but his team showed little to encourage the home fans in a crowd of just under two thousand. In contrast to the Brewers' fine run of form, Gresley have now lost the last four games, and this result completed a dismal Christmas period for the Moatmen. For the Brewers, Darren Stride returned to the side from injury as Captain, and Aaron Webster replaced Brendan Hackett on the left wing. Ex-Gresley man Tony Marsden came close to opening the scoring after ten minutes, but saw his header cleared off the goalline, but two minutes later Albion were in front when a move down the left ended with Craig Smith stabbing in from close range from Spooner's cross. David Holmes came close to adding to scoreline just before half-time, almost converting Aaron Webster's cross, and a bigger scoreline than 1-0 would have been justified after a half in which Grelsey's beleaguered players had scarcely if ever posed any kind of threat to Nick Goodwin's goal. In the second half Gresley at least began to make a match of it, Lyndan Rowland shooting wide and substitute Ian Pitt just over the crossbar, but such is the confidence running through the Burton ranks at the moment, you never really worried they would lose this contest, and on 76 minutes the game was put beyond reach of the Moatmen. Aaron Webster ran into the area from the left, Darren Stride made a decoy run which fooled the Gresley defence and Webster drilled in from 12 yards - his first senior goal for the club. Rowland had a goal disallowed for offside a minute later, the game was brought to a premature halt by a prankster with a whistle, but when the referee finally did blow for time the Brewers could reflect on a 100% record over the holiday period, and total reversal of their fortunes since that 4-0 drubbing at Boston less then a month ago. Albion now have a chance to really measure their improvement when Boston are the visitors to Eton Park on Sunday (Kick-Off 3pm) for the return fixture, with the Pilgrims second in the league and, like the Brewers, in good form.
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