2004/05 - Match No. 55
Nationwide North
Saturday, April 9th, 2005
Vauxhall Motors 2, Alfreton Town 0
IT WAS dour end-of-season fare for travelling Alfreton fans in an untidy contest at Rivacre Park on Saturday.
While the Reds had nothing really at stake, Vauxhall were still hungry for the points in their bid to stave off relegation – and it showed.
It would not be true, though, to say that Alfreton had nothing to play for – pride and a place on the retained list both spring to mind.
And although chairman Wayne Bradley would not be drawn on the latter, he did agree afterwards that on the day Vauxhall showed the greater desire and will to win.
Alfreton could therefore have few complaints about the outcome, although they could certainly make justified moans about the poor standard of refereeing which marred the match and resulted in the Reds’ first red card of the season – the copybook blotted just four matches from the end of the campaign.
However, the official’s poor showing had no real bearing on the outcome and could not be used to excuse the performance or the result.
Matches between these two sides have a habit of becoming niggly, and Vauxhall employed some at times intimidatory tactics to try and unsettle their visitors.
These were not clamped down on by Bolton official Paul Brabin, and the result was a number of scuffles, climaxing in the sending off of both Reds substitute Emeka Nwadike and Vauxhall’s first goal scorer Mike Garrity in the 75th minute.
Alfreton began brightly enough, with Peter Duffield quickly closed down before he could shoot after Mark Sale had headed down Chris Bettney’s cross, and another astute forward ball by Bettney chested down by Mick Godber, only to see it run away from him as he tried one of his trademark shots on the turn.
Gradually Vauxhall began to impose themselves, and Lee Butler was forced to tip over a snap 20-yard shot by Brian Moogan.
Garrity shot tamely wide from a free kick inside the semi-circle, but he had better luck in the 35th minute, when he gave his side a somewhat fortunate lead.
The home side won a corner on the right, and when the ball came over, Garrity swung a foot at it. Again the effort was tame, and Butler appeared to have it covered, but it struck a defender and trickled over the line out of the keeper’s reach.
A mini-brawl in the 44th minute brought a booking for Nick Heinemann, who was penalised for a foul on Garrity, and Duffield followed him into the book seconds later for disputing what really was another poor decision.
Alfreton began the second half in search of the equalizer, and in the opening minute Duffield’s ball over the top gave Godber a half-chance, but he lifted the ball over the angle from 23 yards.
Another promising forward ball by Bettney moments later gave Godber just too much to do to catch it.
Bettney in fact was always looking to create, but when he himself was presented with the Reds’ best chance on 53 from Heinemann’s visionary through pass, keeper Tim Dittmer won the one-on-one, getting a hand to divert the shot for a corner from which Sale headed over.
And that miss was punished on three minutes later. Although the decision this time was a correct one, Heinemann was a little unlucky in conceding the free kick just outside the area on the right by-line. He and Peter Cumiskey had gone up for an aerial challenge, and as the wind carried the ball away from Heinemann he leaned into his rival.
Phil Brazier rose high to head home Garrity’s curling free kick from close range, and there was no way back for the Reds.
A foul by Ian Robinson led to the next skirmish, in which punches were thrown, and after consulting his assistant, the referee showed red cards to Nwadike – a half-time substitute for Matt Fisher – and Garrity.
Duffield had a ghost of a chance to halve the deficit from Godber’s pull back, but Steve McNulty again took the ball off his toe as she shaped to put it away.
Hearts were in mouths when Sale and Carl Spellman were involved in another set-to, with Sale already on a booking for dissent, but this time the referee contented himself with a lecture to both parties.
Godber fired a late chance over the bar from 16 yards after being put in by Bettney, but by then it was pretty much all over, even with five minutes of stoppage time conjured up from somewhere.

VAUXHALL: Dittmer, Woodyatt, McDermott, Spellman, McNulty, Brazier, Garrity, Moogan, A. Wright, O’Donnell (Lawton 29), Cumiskey. Subs not used: D. Wright, Noone, Nesbitt, Glendenning.
ALFRETON: Butler, Blount (Bradshaw 78), Heinemann (Featherstone 71), Foster, Brown, Fisher (Nwadike h/t), Bettney, Robinson, Godber, Duffield, Sale. Subs not used: Cooper, Chapman.
REFEREE: Paul Brabin of Bolton.
ATTENDANCE: 168.
SCORERS: Vauxhall – Garrity 35; Brazier 56.
CAUTIONS: Vauxhall – Woodyatt 90+2 foul on Featherstone. Alfreton – Heinemann 44 (foul on Garrity); Duffield 45 (dissent); Sale 58 (dissent).
DISMISSALS: Vauxhall – Garrity 75 (violent conduct). Alfreton – Nwadike 75 (violent conduct).
REDS MAN OF THE MATCH: Chris Bettney.