Hillmen rescue a point

After a difficult week, a game fought out on a difficult pitch, against difficult opposition, Glossop showed their toughness to earn a battling point, finishing with 9 men in North East Liverpool on Saturday.

It had been a tough week for the management team at Glossop, after the frustration of the manner of their defeat last weekend.  Within hours of allowing central defender Joe Pennington to leave to get more playing time at Colne, having believed they’d done enough to persuade the in demand defender David Badrock to stay in SK13, they were dealt the blow that he’d chosen to join his brother at Prestwich Heys.  Two central defenders gone in a matter of hours meaning four from last weekend’s squad unavailable, with Abdul Djalo suspended and Gabby Mooney-Munoz injured, highlighting the perils of squad depth at this level.  Manager Richard Brodie took matters into his own hands starting himself in attack with Ollie Mackay in midfield and Jack Hopkins in the heart of the defence.

On a cold, damp afternoon on a challenging bobbly pitch at the Litherland Sports village Glossop set about the task of putting greater distance between themselves and their hosts in the league table.  In truth the game bore many similarities to last week with a relatively uneventful first half seeing GNE’s #9 unable to convert either of Glossop’s best chances of the half.  Firstly a goal kick was left to each other by both centre backs and Brodie was in on goal, his effort, under pressure from the covering defender, went wide.  Just after the half hour, in the best move of the half, good work down the right between Dylan McMahon and Tom Lawless saw the young forward’s driven cross turned over, at full stretch, from five yards out.  The hosts offered little threat but a long ball split GNE’s central defenders in the dying moments of the half and Litherland top scorer James Hammill fired over when through on goal.

As the half time whistle went the players made the long walk back, over the running track, which surrounds the pitch, and into the sports centre changing rooms for the half time team talk.

Just as the week before the major talking points were all reserved for the second half.  Five minutes after the restart and for the second game running, Glossop had a midfielder shown a straight red card.  Unlike last week, this was far less straight forward, as what appeared to many as an innocuous tangle of legs was seen by the referee differently.  The man with the whistle adjudged that Conal Gallagher had kicked out at his opponent’s legs, the opponent went down holding his face, and the referee instantly decided that a red car was warranted much to the disbelief of Glossop players and fans alike.  

Despite being down to 10 Glossop fashioned an attacked and Richard Brodie was in behind the Litherland defence, was scythed down in the penalty area but claims from the men in orange were waived away.

As the half wore on and the game became more stretched the home side’s direct style increased the pressure.  A powerful effort which bounced along the surface was smartly turned round his post by Alex Brown.  A free kick from 25 yards rattled the top of Brown’s bar.  

With ten minutes to go the home side thought they’d won it. A disputed corner from Litherland’s left was cleared behind for another on the far side.  This time the jn-swinging corner was only half cleared back out towards the corner taker whose ball to the far post was headed across goal and then smashed home at the far post by substitute Eric Durnell, much to the delight of the hosts and their smattering of fans amongst the seventy-two hardy souls in attendance.  Moments later the home side nearly doubled their lead as a dangerous ball into the box was sliced towards his own goal by Phil Perry who was thankful to Alex Brown’s fantastic reflexes as his reaction save pushed the ball onto the bar before Oliver Parker’s clearance.  

The significance of the save was amplified 60 seconds later when GNE found a much deserved equaliser, through a rather unlikely source.  More good work down the right, this time between McMahon and substitute Kyle Worsley, saw the attacking fullback drive to the edge of the box, his pullback was clipped to the far post when Oliver Mackay was able to calmly control the ball and slot a finish home to draw the hillmen level.  It was his first goal for the club and, his manager revealed afterwards, his first in senior semi professional football.  It capped a strong display for the local lad who had worked tirelessly in the heart of Glossop’s midfield, alongside Lee Rick, especially after the team went down to 10.

The multi-ball system, which had mysteriously momentarily been abandoned resumed and a frantic final ten minute ensued (seven normal time, plus three added) which Glossop were able to see out to earn the point.  Mackay dropped an ‘f-bomb’ towards the assistant referee on the near side, who’d been involved in a verbal exchange with GNE fans, and the referee saw fit punish the final verbal indiscretion of the afternoon and to sin-bin the Glossop man, meaning the hillmen finished with nine on the pitch, and yet still carried a threat.

At the final whistle is was a good point earned in tough circumstances, at the start of the week with Gallagher’s suspension adding to the management team’s challenges.  Injured striker Lew Reilly had been back on the bench as an unused substitute in this game, as was late signing, central defender Bradley Elms as the squad looks to return to winning ways this weekend, in the final February fixture, a 1400 kick off away to in-form Cheadle Town.