2007/2008 Season. Game no. 40. Blue Square Conference North
Saturday, February 23rd, 2008
ALFRETON TOWN 0, AFC Telford United 1

Report by Gordon Foster (Mansfield CHAD). Pics by Phil Lucic.

ALFRETON Town, it seems, having given up scoring goals for Lent.
Saturday’s single goal home defeat by in-form Telford United was the third game in succession that the Reds have failed to hit the net when, on all three occasions, they should have finished up with more than they actually reaped.
The Bucks, chasing a second successive promotion, claimed all three points courtesy of a 61^st-minute strike by Jon Adams, who arrived at the far post to sweep in Gary Birch’s low cross past debutant substitute keeper Laurence Matthewson.
Matthewson had been on the field just five minutes, having replaced Kyle Sutcliffe who pulled up with an injury sustained during a melee, but the substitute had already distinguished himself with one point blank save before being unable to do anything about the goal which settled the outcome.
In fact it was an encounter which should have finished all square, with 3-3 or 4-4 a more realistic outcome given the chances created at both ends. Yet that does not give due credit to the respective defences, and especially the home rearguard in which Tony Butler played a captain’s role.
But while there were openings in plenty the same could not be said for fluent football, with the gusting, swirling wind and a difficult surface making life hard for both sides.
Even so, despite the lack of finesse, there was enough excitement on view to keep the bumper 635 crowd warm – even though a good half of that number were sporting the black and white of the Shropshire visitors.
Alfreton were the first to show any adventure, with Ryan Young confidently saving Laurie Wilson’s 20-yard effort in the third minute, and Paul Clayton denied by Steve Jagielka’s last ditch challenge as he tried to steer in Brian Cusworth’s mis-hit effort three minutes later.
Telford’s left wing back Simon Forsdick, who was overall man of the match and a constant thorn in the Alfreton side as he pushed forward, announced his presence in the ninth minute with a surging overlap and cross shot which hit the face of the bar in the ninth minute, although a very late offside flag would have ruled it out anyway.
But the visitors engineered the first really clear cut opening two more minutes into the contest when Birch, cutting in from the right, slipped the ball to the unmarked Matty Lewis who sliced a glorious chance well wide from the edge of the area.
After a quiet 10-minute spell Josh Law teed up Cusworth who brought a fine diving save out of Young, who then had to stretch up to turn Cusworth’s right wig cross, caught on the wind, over his bar.
Cusworth then emulated Lewis’ earlier miss in the 26^th minute when he timed his run perfectly to beat the offside and go one on one with the advancing Young, only to finish wide of the mark.
It was Telford’s turn to curse their luck on the half-hour, when Forsdick twisted and turned to set up Lewis with a 20-yard effort which rattled the post with Sutcliffe static in the apparent belief that it was going wide.
For the rest of the half there was less in the way of creativity although territorially it remained fairly even, but five minutes into the restart Sutcliffe made a tremendous save to deny Birch at almost point blank range, with the impressive Butler on hand to get away Forsdick’s follow up.
Telford forced a couple of corners, and in the aftermath of the second Sutcliffe picked up an injury. He was clearly in trouble, lacking mobility, and he made way for Matthewson in the 55^th minute.
Two minutes later a threatening foray down the left by Anton Brown was halted when Jimmy Turner denied him a way through to the by-line, but then it was all action at the other end.
First Matthewson dropped Forsdick’s corner but Brown managed to get it away, then the keeper distinguished himself with an unbelievable point blank save to prevent Lee Moore from breaking the deadlock.
Alfreton quickly broke back downfield through Cusworth, who laid off for Chris Walton to graze the bar from 20 yards. But the ensuing goal kick brought about what proved to be the killer strike with Birch’s run and cross to the far post for Adams to put away.
Three minutes later Law rounded Young in the right of the area but then couldn’t find the accuracy to finish effectively.
Danny Reet replaced Cusworth in the 71^st minute as the Reds looked for a different option to try to end their drought, and the substitute thought he had scored five minutes later when he met Clayton’s cross with a downward header from inside the six-yard box.
Home hands were already aloft in acclaim before Young stuck out a leg and managed to block it. Brown was rather fortunate to escape a card after clattering into Turner off the ball to the fury of the visiting fans, and he then almost marred a good personal showing by getting into a tangle with Michael Husbands on the home 18-yard line, and Matthewson had to leave his line to tidy up.
But Alfreton were so close to a last gasp equaliser when, in the fourth minute of added time, Laurie Wilson fed the ball into the area and Clayton’s spectacular overhead effort cleared the bar by a matter of inches.