Monday 27th August 2007

Vics 0 v 1 York

Vics' miserable start to the season continued with another defeat, but yet again it could be argued that maximum points were available given the quality of the opposition.

To be fair, this was an improved performance in contrast to much that had gone on before but there remains major doubts around the quality of the most decisive areas of the team that would allow the opportunity to pull things around.

Perhaps the most surprising omission from the starting line up today was Richard Battersby who had been the most accomplished player from the previous game. Kevin Sharp replaced Brown and Welch returned to his more usual role in the centre of defence at the expense of Josh Wilson, who had done reasonably well in that role at Crawley.

Yet the manager?s changes appeared to have worked well with Vics posing the best of the early threats. Tait combined well with Steele for the latter to shoot across the face of goal. Steele returned the compliment and Tait had a shot deflected wide. From the Sharp corner Tait had a header cleared off the goal line by Craddock.

Given the early promise of their partnership it proved a bitter blow to loose Steele after 27 minutes through injury, and he was replaced by Townson.
This proved to be a conduit for some York pressure and after Brodie had forced a quality save from Connett, former Vics midfielder Stuart Elliott flashed a shot centimetres wide. The best chance of the half fell to Williams after a probing cross from Maylett fell to him at the far post but his finish was turned away by Evans. From the ensuing corner play Parslow got in a late block to ensure that Vics did not take the lead on the point of half time.

The second half failed to live up to the promise of the first although, to a large degree, it was Vics that appeared to create the best openings. A cleverly contrived break from Rusk ended with him delivering a measured pass that set Maylett on goal and he should have scored rather than shoot against the advancing keeper. Rusk again instigated a quality move that allowed Williams a clear sight of goal on the right but his finish was weak. Brodie, not for the first or last time, went to ground to win a dubious free kick that was initially blocked before Elliott followed up to have a shot deflected wide for a corner. From the kick Rusk cleared a shot from off his goal line.

As Vics began to alarmingly run out of ideas it was left to Connett to keep them in the game with a superb save from a Farrell free kick. Rusk again did well to win possession and then find Townson to his left and when the former Macclesfield striker spotted the visiting keeper out of position he almost provided the perfect finish but Evans stretched himself just enough to complete the save. A draw seemed inevitable until Williams lost possession down the Vics right allowing Woolford the opportunity to deliver a far post cross from which BRAYSON, in all too familiar style delivered the perfect finish to secure the points for his new club.

Ben Connett was still called upon to produce another quality save to deny Brodie just before the final whistle leaving Vics to consider what might have been as opposed to what is a worrying reality.

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