Season 2004/5

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Nationwide Conference 25th March 2005 ..
vics	1
Bunce (own goal) 37 ..
gravesend & northfleet	2
Skinner (pen) 36, Jon McCarthy (own goal) 55		Report by Pete Wilson

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Vics could claim that they had not gotten what they deserved from their previous two games but today they did get what their performance merited...nothing.

After Peter Band had headed an early opportunity directly at the keeper the game quickly developed into a slip shod affair with neither side able to find any effective rhythm. Allan was centimetres away from getting onto the end of a good cross from Mayman and when it instead fell to the unprepared Devlin he was unable to control his finish and eventually hooked a shot over the bar. Ralph then produced a fine near post save to deny Jimmy Jackson.

A mundane first half appeared to be drawing to an uneventful close when the game burst into life. Andy Drury was allowed far too much space to deliver a right wing cross which neither Ralph nor his colleagues were able to deal with and in the resulting melee the Vics keeper was adjudged to have fouled James Pinnock. Justin SKINNER stepped up to confidently convert the spot kick.

The home fans had barely had time to register their disbelief when Nathan BUNCE stretched to divert a right wing cross beyond his own stranded keeper and into the net to bring the game back on level terms. A further sixty seconds later and Band set Allan clear on goal but he delayed long enough for Gledhill to get across to challenge leaving Allan to drop to the ground claiming the penalty which was immediately refuted by the referee.

The second half opened with Quayle heading goalward after Wilkerson had been unable to clear a Mayman free kick but Bunce stretched himself to head the ball over his own cross bar. Otherwise Vics looked devoid of ideas and the visitors began to look the more dangerous. McCarthy lost possession to McKimm allowing the Gravesend skipper to get down the flank and deliver a cross which Handyside diverted narrowly wide of his own post.

Ralph saved a Porter header before Vics conceded another goal of an all too regular farcical nature. Ralph failed to make his ground to cut out a right wing cross and in his efforts to clear McCARTHY only succeeded in bundling the ball inside his near post and although the keeper got back to scoop the ball away it was ruled to have crossed the goal line.

From this point Vics rarely looked capable of producing the equaliser. The introductions of Gaghan, Byrne and Bailey did little to change their fortunes and matters were made worse when Devlin was dismissed for a second yellow card with 17 minutes remaining. Vics huffed and puffed to the end but the result never really looked in doubt.

Team: 4-41
Ralph
McCarthy (Bailey 76), Handyside, Charnock, Munroe (Gaghan 63)

Mayman, Devlin, Band, Carr

Quayle (Byrne 67), Allan

Subs not used: Connett & Garvey

Referee: R. L. Lewis

Bookings: Devlin (twice), Allan & Mayman (Vics) Bunce, Pinnock, McKimm & Porter ( Gravesend)

Sending off: Devlin (Vics)

Attend: 919

Man of the Match: Kieran Charnock