Belper United 7 - 1 Gedling MW

Belper United ............ 7 (Baker 4’ 20’, James Rushby 56', Osmen 67’, Williamson 73’, 90’, Mather 89’)

Gedling MW .............. 1 
(Roberts 37’)
(HT 2-1)

Gedling Miners Welfare’s winless run continues as they crashed to a 7-1 defeat against Belper United on Saturday afternoon.

With the impetus to push on from last weekend’s impressive come-from-behind draw against unbeaten Heanor Town, Welfare made the trip to Derbyshire in a determined mood, though any early optimism was soon diminished after only 4 minutes when Belper took the lead.

A loose ball in the middle of the park wasn’t dealt with and pounced on by James Osmen whose chipped pass allowed Ryan Baker to break through and fire through the legs of Keaton Sharpe to put the hosts in front.

Hoping to put a sluggish start behind them, Gedling looked for the promising link-up play showed early on between Curtis Millward, Courtney Hastings and Jimmy Spiers with the latter firing their first shot on anger with 6 minutes played that failed to trouble Scott Whittingham.

The visitors grew into the tie and following a decent spell in possession could have bagged an equaliser that may have settled them though Millward’s effort, after good interplay between Spiers and Paolo Piliero, skipped wide of Whittingham’s post.

Without troubling their hosts further, Belper’s defensive efforts were rewarded at the other end when on 20 minutes, they doubled their lead.

An angled ball forward found James Rushby in behind but despite being thwarted at his feet by Sharpe, the ball deflected kindly into the path of Baker who fired home to notch his second of the game.

Despite the score, Gedling continued to rally, and they ended the first period the stronger of the two sides with a couple of glorious opportunities to pull within one.

Firstly, a cleverly devised short corner routine between Ross McCaughey and Millward saw Piliero stoop well at the front post but his header, trickling toward the back post, was emphatically cleared by a combination of Sam Ridgard and Tom Rushby.

Just after the half hour, Hastings’ bamboozling run down the right saw him beyond Niall Mather and his low cross found the onrushing Matt Newton whose well-struck hit was excellently saved by Whittingham with a trailing leg.

In the ascendancy, Welfare continued to press looking for a way back into the game and eight minutes before the break their pressure saw them pull within one.

After Spiers found McCaughey with an impressive pass between the lines, the full-back’s deep cross was perfect for the loitering Charlie Roberts who buried his header back across Whittingham into the far corner and give Gedling a deserved way back into the game.

Moments later, Kieran Harrison’s dangerous free kick found the head of Newton who flicked agonisingly wide of the post as the visitors were unlucky not go into the break all square.

The interval was a welcome respite for United who may have seen their lead slip, though it only took them 9 minutes of the second half to add a third.

Breaking up play down the right, Joshua Wright fed in James Rushby who slipped the offside trap and calmly finish past Sharpe to regain Belper’s two-goal lead.

Not helped by the dismissal of Hastings and Josh Thornton – both sin-binned for dissent midway through the second half – the home side immediately set about making their two-man advantage and with 67 minutes played, Osmen made it four.

Down the right, Ridgard found time and space to deliver a wicked cross and the midfielder smashed home his first for the club after recently signing from Derbyshire neighbours Heanor.

Now smelling blood, the hosts went for the jugular and looked to put the game completely out of sight, and they heaped further misery on Gedling 17 minutes from time by scoring a fifth.

Mather’s hard work down the left saw his looping cross pulled back by Ridgard who teed up substitute Curtis Williamson to fire home past Sharpe.

With Whittingham a mere spectator for the most part, he had to be on his toes with 10 minutes remaining but Felix Hogg, admirably still pushing forward and benefiting from a deflected McCaughey cross, floated a poor wide to sum up a dismal afternoon.

Things may have worsened for Miners with minutes remaining when Tom Rushby’s rasping strike arrowed just wide past a sprawling Sharpe, though, as stoppage time approached, Belper made time to strike twice more.

When Wright was felled down the right, Mather’s free kick was seemingly easy for Sharpe to catch unopposed, but an uncharacteristic lapse saw the ball slip through his grasp and bounce over the line before Osmen could ensure a sixth for his side.

With the last attempt of the match, Williamson, who bagged a brace when the sides met in September, pounced on a loose pass by McCaughey to tally his second of the game by curling a sumptuous effort into the top corner before referee Martin Beard called time to end Gedling’s woes.

A poor Welfare performance on the day despite having spells throughout that may have changed the outcome of the game. They look to put this behind him when they travel to Shirebrook Town a week on Saturday (18 January), kick off 15:00.

Manager Chris Marks spoke after the game: “A day to forget. We move on”.

Referee - 
Martin Beard
Assistant Referees – Mick Newton & Wayne Porter

Belper United – Scott Whittingham, Sam Ridgard, Niall Mather, Tom Rushby (Jake Smith 88’), Ben Rushby (c), Louis Anthony, Joshua Wright (Phillip Granville 75’), Dean Oliver, James Osmen, Ryan Baker, James Rushby (Curtis Williamson 63’)

Unused Substitutes – Sam Vickers, Dale Stewart
Cautions – Ridgard (foul 41’)

Gedling Miners Welfare - 
Keaton Sharpe, Charlie Roberts, Ross McCaughey (c), Kieran Harrison, Dean Gent, Paolo Piliero (Felix Hogg 68’), Curtis Millward (Jermaine Palmer 68’), Josh Thornton, Courtney Hastings, Jimmy Spiers (Joe Meakin 79’), Matt Newton
Unused Substitutes – Liam Corrigan, Luke Smith

Cautions – Thornton (dissent – sin-binned 58’), Hastings (dissent – sin-binned 60’)

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