City end Magpies' run (From Dorset Echo)

City end Magpies' run

12:18am Tuesday 9th February 2010

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)

CHELMSFORD CITY 1 Dorchester TOWN 0

DORCHESTER missed the opportunity to pull further away from the relegation zone as a single quality goal from Chelmsford’s John Martin was enough to decide a feisty encounter at Melbourne Park.

Magpies’ boss Ashley Vickers, who saw his side’s five-game unbeaten run ended, was forced to reshuffle his side from Saturday’s goalless clash with Bromley after skipper Kevin Hill and Ryan Moss were ruled out because of flu.

Ryan Hill and Harry Nodwell were both drafted in with Matt Groves replacing Jules Emati-Emati up front, while Nick Crittenden missed out because of an ankle injury.

The first 20 minutes will have passed the spectators by until Mat-thew Lock rattled the crossbar for the home side with a curling free-kick from 25 yards.

Shortly afterwards the Magpies attempted to reply as Gary Bowles crept in at the far post to head wide from a deep free-kick.

This 28th-minute effort was quickly followed by a brief flurry of chances for Dorchester as skipper Mark Jermyn came forward to go close and force a corner from which fellow centre-half Nathan Walker brought the best out of Clarets’ goalkeeper Ashley Harrison.

Towards the end of the half Steve Devlin’s close control forged another opportunity for the Magpies, shooting straight at Harrison from inside the box, but the visitors smacked the bar again.

John Martin found himself with the ball five yards inside the box and he opportunistically chipped custodian Regan Coward only to see the ball skim the woodwork and finish wide.

Ben Martin saw a header go wide for the hosts as the break was imminent but the scores were deadlocked at the interval.

After the break Lock tested Town’s resolve once more with a couple of teasing dead balls, the first coming straight back off the body of Coward while another early ball was snatched at by Clarets’ captain Dave Rainford as it trickled wide.

A minute before the hour mark, however, came the moment of the match as Ricky Holmes laid the ball back into the path of John Martin just outside the box who wrapped his boot around a rasping drive into the far top corner to give his team the lead.

Mid-way through the half the temperature was raised when Chelms-ford’s Steve Clark and Town’s Neil Martin both went in head-on and fully-committed but referee Adam Crysell opted to take no action other than a yellow card for Clark once an ensuing melee had simmered down.

With 19 minutes remaining Holmes should have done better when a poorly-weighted defensive header sent him through to rifle over, while Dorchester substitute Jules Emati-Emati also squandered a chance with most of the goal to aim at from distance but with Harrison out of sight as he scooped wide.

A bullet Devlin free-kick required very strong fists from Harrison to keep it out four minutes from time though the hosts should have wrapped the game up through their own substitute Rob Edmans in injury time.

He latched on to a terrible kick out from Coward and succeeded in missing a handful of quick, consecutive chances.

Ultimately, however, it was the Clarets who prevailed and went second in the Blue Square South table while the Magpies continue to look over their shoulders at the dreaded drop-zone with a number of rivals playing later in the week.

Chelmsford: Harrison, Clark, Haswell, B Martin, Cooper, Rainford, J Martin, Patterson, Thomas (Edmans, 73), Lock, Holmes (Modeste 73). Subs not used: Berquez, Pavett, Horwood.

Magpies: Coward, Hill (Gleeson, 81), Critchell, Jermyn, Walker, Bowles, Nodwell (Emati-Emati 62), Coutts, Martin, Groves, Devlin. Subs not used: Vickers, Crittenden, Evans.

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)