Saturday, January 10, 2004

AS gee-ups go, slapping last season's top scorer on the transfer list ranks among the more radical by John Barton of late.

But putting Darren Middleton up for sale might yet prove to be a catalyst for a number of City's under-achievers to start performing and judging by the committed and purposeful display at Spytty Park, it paid early dividends.

Worcester exacted revenge on Newport County for November's 5-1 drubbing at St George's Lane with an emphatic 4-0 scoreline of their own, clinched with goals from Carl Heeley, Leon Kelly, Mark Owen and Adam Wilde.

The manner of the victory suggested the fate of the mercurial Middleton had been digested by his team-mates, all of whom put heart and soul into 90 minutes on the most energy sapping of pitches.

"Pressure, what pressure!" was City's assistant manager Mick Tuohy wry comment after the club's first win of the new year but there was no disguising the relief, and pride, in a job well done in difficult conditions.

"We're very pleased. It followed on from last week when I thought we deserved something at Dover.

"The lads are genuinely disappointed they have not picked up points over the Christmas period and people do start wondering where the next win is coming from," admitted Tuohy.

However after a cagey start City looked every inch winners with plus points all over the pitch not least an impressive display from strike duo Mark Owen and Leon Kelly who Tuohy dubbed 'exceptional' and a second-half substitute's appearance by Jon Holloway.

There was also a boost for Adam Wilde's fragile confidence with a well-taken goal and youngster Liam McDonald notched up another solid display.

"They were very difficult conditions but we had immense performances all over and although it wasn't pretty, it was a convincing win in the end," added Tuohy.

Convincing it was, and victory leaves them just three points adrift of third place in the Dr Martens Premier Division.

"We shook things up a bit with John doing things I normally do and vice versa and other people doing various bits and pieces and on reflection it worked," said Tuohy.

"But we need to put in back-to-back performances on a regular basis and that will establish what success we have for the rest of the season."

Heeley's knack of scoring vital goals shows no signs of disappearing and, in a strike carved out by the defenders union, City's skipper stabbed home a Barry Woolley header following a deep cross from Allan Davies.

The goal tilted the match in the visitors' favour following an early exchange of chances, the best of which fell to the Exiles' Steve Williams, wriggling free of Wilde, to force a good save from Danny McDonnell.

But as the game wore and the conditions deteriorated so City stepped up their determination with Kelly and Owen's combination of speed and power running Newport ragged.

Goal number two arrived in the 57th minute when Owen, on target at Dover last week, turned creator with a superb reverse ball to release Kelly who skipped round keeper Duncan Roberts and slid the ball into an empty net after momentarily threatening to over run it.

Owen, denied a goal with a precise lob in the 68th minute, finally got on the scoresheet three minutes from time when Roberts saved a Kelly penalty only for his alert strike partner to rifle in the rebound. Newport's Jeff Eckhardt conceded the penalty by chopping down Wilde, earning a red card in the process.

Wilde capped a much brighter display with a fourth, coolly slotting home in stoppage time after the winger had pounced on a poor pass.