Droylsden F.C.-The bloods on the net!

DROYLSDEN 0 - 1 HISTON

BLUE SQUARE PREMIER - Saturday 20 October 2007

Report by Gary Owen

The Bloods were left wondering how they did not at least take a point from this clash of last season Nationwide North and South champions in front of a disappointing crowd.

Droylsden even benefitted from playing against ten men for the final half an hour follwoing the dismissal of Cliff Akurang for use of an elbow on Liam Murray – an incident that Stutes' boss Steve Fallon didn't even see as a foul!

Dave Pace, on the other hand, was left bemused following the match. "I can't believe the respective positions of the two sides out there today – and that's not sour grapes" he said after the final whistle, following a game that saw a goal-line clearance to thwart Jody Banim, who also struck the woodwork, and a missed penalty from the Cambridgeshire side.

Ironically, itwas Akurang who had the game's first real chance when he hooked over at the near post from Antonio Murray's low cross.

On the quarter hour, Chris Denham received the ball from Jamie McGuire, twisted and turned past two defenders, before seeing his right-footed piledriver tipped over the bar by Danny Naisbitt in the Histon goal.

Akurang saw a header fly over, Matthew Langston headed straight at Paul Phillips, and Gareth Gwillim saw a shot fly a yard wide of the mark, before Terry Fearns pulled a shot wide for the Bloods.

Fearns then turned provider, chesting the ball into Banim's path on the edge of the box, but his first time volley flew just wide.

Danny Wright had three chances to open the scoring for Histon after the break, his third attempt going wide of Phillips' right hand upright in what was the game's best chance at that point following some pin-ball in the Bloods' box.

Denham again latched onto a pass from McGuire, and once again Naisbitt was equal to the task. The ball fell loose, though, but Gwillim rescued Histon as Fearns was about to pounce.

Then came Akurang's dismissal, and moments later McGuire found himself just yards from goal, but the ball got stuck under his feet. He did manage to get his shot away, but Naisbitt pulled off a fine reflex save.

That miss proved costly, as Histon then took the lead on 70 minutes. Antonio Murray, ploughing a sole furrow up front, made progress down the right flank and held-up play for team-mates to arrive. Perhaps Phillips could have come for the cross, but there was Nathaniel Knight-Percival at the far post to loop a header into the opposite corner.

Seven minutes later, Fearns played in Banim, but his strike accross Naisbitt beat the Histon custodian, and then agonisingly struck the upright and was cleared before Gareth Morris could make any advantage of the rebound.

Denham and Steve Daly then both went close, and Naisbitt had to back-peddle for all his worth to tip over a Denham cross-come-shot.

Just as many were expecting the inevitable equaliser to come, disaster seemed to strike when Murray was adjudged to have fouled Knight-Percival, but Jamie Barker could only hit the woodwork from 12 yards, leaving Droylsden with the chance to still get something from the game.

That moment almost arrived with two minutes to spare, when Banim's volley was destined for the top corner, but Craig Pope had remained on the post from an earlier corner and threw his head at the ball from out of nowhere to deny Droylsden a deserved point.

At least the Bloods now have some respite from league action until Saturday 3 November, by which time they will have hopefully progressed to the FA Cup First Round and pulled a plumb tie!

TEAMS

DROYLSDEN: Phillips, Cryan, Warner (Daly, 80), Halford, Murray, Morris (Murphy, 89), McGuire, Stephens (Lynch, 89), Denham, Banim, Fearns.

Subs. not used: Roche, Senior.

HISTON: Naisbitt, Pope, Gwillim, Hipperson, Langston, Cambridge, Kennedy J., Knight-Percival, Murray, Akurang, Wright (Barker, 60).

Subs. not used: Mitchell-King, Kennedy N., Nightingale, Osborn.

REFREE: Mr. Peter Quinn (Middlesbrough, Cleveland)

ATTENDANCE: 497