Wrexham 1
Rushden & Diamonds 1

Saturday 28 February 2004 @ 15:00

MATCH STATS

Score and Scorers

Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1
Carlos Edwards 20' Rodney Jack 30'

Starting Line Ups

Wrexham Rushden & Diamonds
01 Andy Dibble 36 Jamie Ashdown
18 Shaun Pejic 05 Andy Edwards
05 Brian Carey 06 Barry Hunter
04 Steve Roberts 35 Leo Roget
07 Carlos Edwards 02 Marcus Bignot
16 Matt Crowell 04 Gary Mills
02 Jim Whitley 08 Ritchie Hanlon 74'
14 Paul Edwards 12 Stuart Gray
23 Hector Sam 68' 03 Paul Underwood
09 Chris Armstrong 09 Rodney Jack
11 Chris Llewellyn 20 Paul Kitson 80'

Substitutes

Wrexham Rushden & Diamonds
08 Lee Jones 68' 01 Billy Turley (GK)
12 Paul Barrett 14 John Dempster
13 Paul Whitfield (GK) 16 Robert Duffy 80'
15 Craig Morgan 19 Daniel Talbot
23 Hector Sam 22 Paul Hall 74'

Yellow and Red Cards

Wrexham Rushden & Diamonds

62'

Chris Llewellyn - Retaliation on Paul Kitson None

Stat Attack

Wrexham Rushden & Diamonds
11 Shots on Goal 6
5 Shots on Target 2
10 Fouls Committed 7
10 Corners 5
1 Yellow Card 0
0 Red Card 0

Other Information

Venue: Racecourse Ground Attendance: 3,680
Referee: Eddie Evans - Manchester Half Time: Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1
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MATCH REPORT

MID-TABLE MEDIOCRITY

By Mark Williams, Red Passion Online

Pre-match thoughts: After the disaster at Bournemouth in midweek a result is very important to rebuild the confidence even if the performance is not the best.

Conditions: Sunny but crisp winter’s day. Snow all melted away and pitch perfect.

Tactics: Denis Smith sprung a surprise with a change in system as well as the expected personnel. Three went up front with Hector Sam the extra striker to replace Steve Thomas and Paul Edwards was back after injury at left wing back and this meant Lee Jones sat out. Shaun Pejic and Matt Crowell replaced the suspended Dennis Lawrence and Darren Ferguson respectively.

Sum up the performance in one sentence: Good approach play but lacked that bit of flair to break down the Rushden defence.

Turning point: Chris Llewellyn hitting the bar from close range midway through the second half.

Main incidents and goals:

0-15 minutes: With only half a minute of the half gone Wrexham could, and probably should, have found themselves a goal down. Despite the back three being completely different from the three that conceded the record hat-trick to James Hayter it was clearly visible they were nervous. The back three were easily split with a through ball down the left and for some reason Andy Dibble rushed off his line and within a couple of passes Dibble was played out of the game. Paul Kitson was now faced with virtually an open goal but Brian Carey put in a blocking challenge to deflect the ball away for a corner. From this corner the marking was none existent and Ritchie Hanlon should have done better than do direct a free header from twelve yards narrowly over. The Wrexham defence eventually restored some order and Wrexham’s best effort came from what looked like a cross from Chris Llewellyn. The striker turned his marker on the left side of the area and his floated ball across the six yard box was caught by Jamie Ashdown on his line and with the keeper falling backwards he did well not to carry the ball over the line for the opening goal. Ashdown was struggling with his clearances and he soon gave the ball to Carlos Edwards on the Wrexham right who in turn played in Matt Crowell. The midfielder took the ball along the edge of the area and his left footed shot was turned away for a corner by Jamie Ashdown, although the linesman gave a goal kick before the referee corrected him. Score 0-0.

15-30 minutes: Wrexham opened the scoring with twenty minutes on the clock and it was all down to the work of Carlos Edwards. The Trinidadian picked up the ball in midfield and after turning the Rushden defence on a couple of occasions he delivered a curling left foot shot from twenty-five yards that took a slight deflection past the despairing dive of Ashdown’s left hand into the bottom corner. Wrexham really never built on this lead and the closest they came was when Brian Carey stretched to head wide a deep corner driven in from the right by Matt Crowell. Score 1-0.

30-45 minutes: Rushden hit Wrexham with an equaliser on the half hour mark when the Red Dragons could not deal with a deep cross from the left. Paul Underwood swung over a deep cross that missed out Shaun Pejic and Brian Carey and although Steve Roberts looked certain to clear the danger he allowed Rodney Jack to get in ahead of him and the striker returned the ball across Dibble and into the far corner off the post for the equaliser. Moments later Dibble had to rush out to the feet of Jack to deny the striker after he had got the better of Paul Edwards. At the other end Wrexham created a couple of chances and both times Chris Armstrong was the catalyst of the move. The striker played a good 1-2 with Jim Whitley before the midfielder’s shot from the edge of the area was saved by Ashdown by diving low to his right. On the stroke of half time a good flick from Armstrong set in Carlos Edwards but the Trinidadian shot straight at Ashdown with a left foot volley on the edge of the area when a yard either side of the keeper would have been a certain goal. Half Time 1-1.

At least we didn't lose, but you could see the lack of confidence in the play, they looked a different side to that against Barnsley

WelshandRed on the RP Messageboard
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45-60 minutes: The second half was a real disappointment as the expected onslaught from Wrexham never really occurred. The game was now mainly played in midfield and both teams lacked any real flair to create any openings that were noteworthy. Score 1-1.

60-75 minutes: Steve Roberts had the first real opportunity of the second half when Steve Roberts went on a run that took him from just inside the Rushden half to the edge of the penalty area but once he broke into the area his shot was off target. Wrexham should have retaken the lead in the 63rd minute when they squandered a couple of glorious opportunities from close range. Chris Armstrong was denied at the far post by a save from Jamie Ashdown and from the rebound Armstrong played it high across the six yard box to Chris Llewellyn who had a free header at the far post but he could not keep it down and the ball rebounded off the top of the bar to safety when it should have really been the second goal for Wrexham. Hector Sam was replaced by Lee Jones with twenty minutes left and this came as no real surprise as Sam was largely a spectator in the second half. Score 1-1.

75-90 minutes: With the match entering the closing stages chances were still few and far between with the decent opportunities for both sides being long range efforts. Substitute Paul hall tried his luck from 20 yards only to see his shot blocked by Shaun Pejic. This allowed Wrexham to break quickly but Paul Edwards’ cross was cut out before Lee Jones could get a touch on the ball. Wrexham had the majority of play but failed to create any clear-cut chances and had to rely on Shaun Pejic and Matt Crowell for strikes on goal. Pejic picked up the ball just inside the Rushden half and with no one closing him down he was allowed to progress to the edge of the area but his driven shot bent wide of the post. Crowell’s effort from twenty-five yards looked to have too much height but it dipped at the end and only narrowly went over the bar. Hesitation between Brian Carey and Shaun Pejic allowed Rodney Jack to break into the area but Andy Dibble was quick off his line to save at the feet of the attacker and Brian Carey cleared the danger away for a throw in. In the last attack of the game Chris Llewellyn fired in a low cross that was also played behind for a corner with Chris Armstrong just missing out on a touch. Final Score 1-1.

Opposition and fans: Only about 150 supporters made the trip and made some noise. On this performance it will be difficult to see Rushden & Diamonds making any claims for promotion this season as they appear to lack any creativity (just like Wrexham!)

Officials: Eddie Evans had a decent game and only booked Chris Llewellyn for retaliation after the striker himself had been awarded a free kick.

Man of the match: Hard to disagree with the sponsors choice of Matt Crowell, but that was more down to the lack of any match winning performances from the other ten players.

If you were Denis Smith: Happy to play a match to get the Bournemouth game out of the system. The change of system caught Rushden & Diamonds by surprise but the lack of clear cut chances was again disappointing.

Post match thoughts: In terms of the Bournemouth match this was a marked improvement but at the end of the day it was another two points dropped at home against an average side that will finish the season in mid table – a position that Wrexham will find themselves in if they continue to drop points at home.

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DETAILED MATCH REPORTS
Rushden & Diamonds FC:
Wales on Sunday: No skipper, no hunger, no victory
Wrexham AFC: Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1 - Match Pictures
Wrexham AFC: Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1 - Match Report
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OTHER MATCH REPORTS
Ananova: FT- Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1

BBCi: Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1 - Minute-by-minute

BBCi: Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1
Nationwide Football: Wrexham 1, Rushden & Diamonds 1
Sporting Life: Wrexham 1 Rushden & Diamonds 1 - Match Stats
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AUDIO REPORTS AND QUOTES

Red Passion Soccer Saturday Audio Report with Mark Williams

Listen to Denis Smith speaking to BBC Radio Wales (RealPlayer Format)
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PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES

Denis Smith: “I was delighted with the improvement in the second half - as compared to the first! What we needed to do was take the one good chance we had in the second half and if that goes in, then everyone comes away with a smile and it gets you over an extremely difficult week. That was Chris Llewellyn’s header, which he should have possibly done better with, but he got in there and it was slightly difficult chance. We can’t bring players in, so we had to take a look at our formation. We tried something different today with the three strikers and slowly grew into it, but in the first half it didn’t look very useful. Matty (Crowell), I thought he did okay. He is always willing to shoot and had a good couple of good shots in both halves. He is still a young and there is a long way to go with him. People like him and Craig Morgan maybe should be a bit further back in their development, with the likes of Shaun Pejic getting a few more games here and there. But we are about four men short in the squad, so have had to push the 18 and 19-year-olds further up the ladder, a little sooner that we would do normally. We have just been beaten in two games on the trot and had to make long trips, and I didn’t even know my team until 1.30pm. As two of the lads had fitness tests before kick-off, after pulling out of training on Friday, and the pair came through fit to play when we weren’t expecting them to. Both Chris Armstrong and Paul Edwards were injured early yesterday, but then they came through a fitness test before the match. At 10 o’clock yesterday morning we were all fit, but by quarter to eleven they were out injured and the session was virtually killed. We carried on with it, but preparing for a different line-up, as I didn’t expect them to be available. I could have gone 4-4-2, something that everyone knows, but I felt everything needed a shake up. From a fans point of view, I wanted to show that we were going out there with serious intent and I wanted to get over to the players that we needed to score after failing to do so in the last few games. It was disappointing at times, but at least people can’t say we didn’t try and change things.” [Source: Wrexham AFC]

Brian Talbot: "I’ll be the happier with that result than Denis Smith, as he’s the home team. We had three chances in the first five minutes and had we taken them, been a bit more clinical, then we would have gone in front. Then the next thing we know we go a goal behind, a good goal from a very good player. I think Carlos is an excellent player, who always gives us trouble. We went man-for-man on him with Paul Underwood, but he got away from us, cut inside and hit it on his wrong foot. It flew into the net – a good finish. We then had a good break on the left and ball in from Underwood, and just when you thought the chance had gone, Rodney Jack flashed it in at the back post for another good finish. You would have thought then that there would have been more goals in the game, but from then on we cancelled each other out. In the end, I think a draw was a fair result. In the last 10 minutes they thought they could win it and had more of the play than us. So with our recent away form, I was pleased with a point. We got a positive result today, in my opinion, and now we have two home games to come in which we have to make it count. Week in and week out all the games are tough for us." [Source: Wrexham AFC]
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DIVISION TWO

Results

Blackpool

0-1

Plymouth Argyle

Stonebridge 54'

7,253

 

Bournemouth

Hayter 61'

1-0

Oldham Athletic

6,594

 

Brentford

Evans 16'

Hutchinson 40'

2-3

Notts County

Richardson 12'

heffernan 72'

Scully 82'

4,478

 

Chesterfield

v

Colchester United

OFF

 

Grimsby Town

Jevons 23' 31' 55' (p) 75'

Armstrong 27'

Rankin 41'

Crane Sent Off 57'

6-1

Barnsley

Nardiello 47'

Ireland Sent Off 15'

5,603

 

Peterborough United

Willock 79'

1-2

Luton Town

Howard 26'

Brkovic 77'

6,628

 

Port Vale

v

Swindon Town

OFF

 

Sheffield Wednesday

Lee 90'

1-0

Bristol City

24,154

 

Stockport County

Mclachlan 41'

1-1

Brighton & Hove Albion

Virgo 52'

5,038

 

Tranmere Rovers

v

Queens Park Rangers

OFF

 

Wrexham

C Edwards 20'

1-1

Rushden & Diamonds

Jack 30'

3,680

 

Wycombe Wanderers

Simpemba 8'

McSporran 23'

Tyson 64'

3-4

Hartlepool United

Williams 4' 46'

Robertson 10'

Tinkler 39' (p)

4,731

 

League Table

Pos   Team   P   W   D   L   F   A   GD   Pts
1   Plymouth Argyle   33   19   9   5   68   31   37   66
2   Bristol City   33   18   10   5   47   24   23   64
3   Queens Park Rangers   32   16   11   5   56   30   26   59
4   Swindon Town   32   15   9   8   52   39   13   54
5   Luton Town   32   14   10   8   52   44   8   52
6   Port Vale   32   15   6   11   53   45   8   51
7 Brighton & Hove Alb 33 14 8 11 47 36 11 50
8 AFC Bournemouth 33 13 10 10 41 36 5 49
9 Barnsley 33 12 12 9 41 41 0 48
10   Wrexham   33   14   6   13   37   38   -1   48
11 Hartlepool United 32 12 11 9 50 41 9 47
12 Sheffield Wednesday 33 11 12 10 38 40 -2 45
13 Rushden and Diamonds 33 12 7 14 53 53 0 43
14 Tranmere Rovers 32 9 14 9 38 43 -5 41
15 Colchester United 31 11 8 12 32 41 -9 41
16 Blackpool 32 11 7 14 38 45 -7 40
17 Grimsby Town 33 10 9 14 43 57 -14 39
18 Oldham Athletic 33 8 13 12 47 48 -1 37
19 Chesterfield 32 8 10 14 31 48 -17 34
20 Brentford 33 9 7 17 36 54 -18 34
21   Notts County   33   8   7   18   37   56   -19   31
22   Peterborough United   33   6   12   15   37   47   -10   30
23   Stockport County   33   5   14   14   42   58   -16   29
24   Wycombe Wanderers   33   4   12   17   35   56   -21   24
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