Rugby Town 0-2 Grantham Town

Southern League Premier Division

Saturday, 15th April 2006

Attendance | 265

Photo Gallery | Captain Craig Herbert in action

An uninspiring Rugby side made it seven matches without a home win, when Grantham goals either side of half-time condemned them to a 2-0 reverse at Butlin Road on Saturday.

With top scorer David Stone a surprise starter after pulling-up with a hamstring injury in the midweek defeat against Salisbury, manager Billy Jeffrey also recalled Kevin Slinn and Andy Peaks to the starting line-up in place of Matt Wells and the unavailable Tom Shaw.

Rugby had the first chance of the game when Chris Tullin flashed his half volley just wide of the goal after the ball had fallen to him on the edge of the Gingerbreads' box from a corner.

Farhad Afandiyev was busy in the Rugby goal, first palming over a swerving effort from Michael Sneddon and then gathering a shot from Sneddon's strike partner Jason Turner.

Turner then managed to get behind the Rugby back three, and pulled back a fine cross for Douglas Wade - who headed wide with an open goal gaping in front him.

Tim Wooding's long range free kick on 32 minutes looked on target, until it struck the head of Grantham's Steve Julian and flew away for a corner, but the deadlock was broken five minutes later when Afandiyev failed to claim a corner and Turner helped the ball back across the box to Grant Brown, who struck it powerfully home through a crowd of Rugby defenders - despite the efforts of Tullin on the goal line.

A late saving tackle by Peaks on Sneddon not long after kept the score at 1-0, and then shortly before half-time Rugby's best chance of the half fell to Ryan Byrne, who saw his shot smothered by Grantham keeper Mario Ziccardi after he had been cleverly released by Delroy Gordon.

Grantham player-manager Lee Glover set-up the killer blow to the Valley on 52 minutes, when he slid the ball through for Turner, who had once more found space behind the home side's defence and he comfortably stroked it into the net past a helpless Afandiyev.

Jeffrey introduced Northampton Town academy player Matt Gearing shortly after the goal and re-jigged his formation in the search of a goal, employing three up-front for the remainder of the game, and Rugby did then start to look more threatening as an attacking force.

However Ziccardi was in particularly dominant form for the visitors, confidently claiming a number of corners and deep crosses into the box. Steve Evans nearly grabbed one back against his old side when he dragged a shot back from a wide left position, but unfortunately his effort was off-target.

On 63 minutes, Matt Wells's cross from the left was just too long for Gordon, and then the same two players combined well again two minutes later, only to see Wells this time unable to trouble Ziccardi greatly with his shot.

The dangerous Turner broke free in the penalty area again, but this time Afandiyev was able to smother the resulting shot with his body, and then the Azerbaijani stopper produced a fine reflex save from Turner's flicked shot after Wade had found him with a pinpoint cross.

The Valley had two more chances to grab a consolation before the end. First Slinn shot wide after a neat touch back from Gearing, and then with the game almost over Evans volleyed into the side netting.