Morpeth Town 1-2 Ilkeston Town – Written by Jon Tait
Nathan Buddle was stretchered off in Morpeth’s opening day defeat.
The experienced defender was badly injured while trying to force the ball home and was left flattened.
“Football is put into perspective with things like that. Budds has gone in full throttle and clashed heads. He’s on gas and air and will go straight to hospital – fingers crossed its not as bad as it first seemed,” gaffer Craig Lynch told Highwayman TV.
Skipper Jeff Henderson was sent off just before the break and Lynch himself was booked in a frustrating afternoon with a performance he described as ‘chalk and cheese.’
Town went behind when they were left confused by a thrown-in decision and Ilkeston keeper Dylan Wharton pumped a long ball forward which bounced and as Dan Langley challenged shoulder to shoulder with Jamie Walker, the ref pointed to the spot.
He picked himself up and dispatched the spot-kick into the bottom corner.
It was two shortly after when Morpeth didn’t clear a bouncing ball in the box and it was bundled in on the overhead by Walker for his second.
Henderson walked back up the tunnel in the 40th minute when he was adjudged to have pulled down Harvey Kirby-Moore as last man.
“I don’t want to start the season on a low with the officials, but that first goal just sums it up,” said Lynch.
Langley produced a fine diving save to deny Kirby-Moore at the near post, but it was ten-man Morpeth who made most of the attacking in a game littered with fouls, flare-ups and bad temper.
They pulled one back in added time as debutant Cyril Giraud latched onto a neat pass and drilled in first time from the edge of the box.
“The lads were brilliant second half. We chopped and changed it, scored a great goal, we’ve said it’s a team game this season and we’ve got a good squad that can start or not,” continued Lynch.
“At the end of the day, first half we can’t blame the officials, the defending was not good enough, second half, proud of the lads. It’s one game, we’ve seen what we can be.”
“There’s lots of positives, but unfortunately too many negatives first half and when you find yourself 2-0 down in this League with ten men five minutes before half time, you’ve got a mountain to climb.”
Morpeth Town: Langley; Evans, Myers, Henderson (C), Buddle (Chater 88′), Holvey; Dowling (Hodgson 68′), Robson, Gordon (Giraud 54′); James, Bollado (Griggs 75′).
Unused sub: Brown.
