Saturday, April 12, 2003

A SEASON that promised so much is fast-turning into a nightmare for Worcester City who slumped to a 3-2 defeat at lowly Ilkeston on Saturday.

Talk of runners-up spot now appears more fanciful than realistic as the Worcester club face up to a run of form which has seen them win just once in seven games.

Ironically for a team that could have consigned the Derbyshire club to relegation from the Dr Martens Premier Division, it was City who resembled the side battling to stay afloat.

John Barton locked his players in the dressing room for more than an hour after the game for a lengthy and blunt post mortem. It will have made grim listening for some of the squad who are fast playing themselves to an exit from the club.

The passion and drive, so evident earlier in the campaign, has evaporated, leaving a pale imitation behind. Individually there were flashes of good play by the likes of Mitch Counsell and David Foy but collectively it is going horribly wrong.

Defensively City are creaking, characterised by the misunderstanding between Jon Holloway and Danny McDonnell that allowed Chris Freestone to nip in and open the scoring while from an attacking point of view there was little conviction and too much hit and hope.

Insult was literally added to injury when the Robins scored two goals in two minutes with City down to 10 men due to Allan Davies' groin finally giving away.

Aaron O'Connor's brilliant solo effort and Freestone's header from a Tony Hemmings' free kick putting Ilkeston 3-1 up five minutes after the interval.

Adam Webster had offered a glimmer of hope with a 13th minute equaliser, charging down an Andy Love clearance onto the bar and then heading in the rebound but two minutes later O'Connor powered a Hemmings' corner past McDonnell but it was controversially ruled out with Freestone adjudged to have impeded the keeper.

City seldom looked convincing and when Webster was released by Carl Heeley he dallied before teeing up Middleton who was quickly closed down.

Holloway and Mark Shail had defended stoutly with the former making two last gasp clearances to keep Ilkeston at bay but City's grip on the match was tentative.

Barton brought on Paul Carty for Dan Jones at half time but the switch didn't have the desired effect with O'Connor skipping through and hitting the post with the defence at sixes and sevens.

Ilkeston then struck twice in two minutes to leave City chasing the match. There had been a fleeting opportunity for Middleton to give City the lead prior to the Ilkeston's second goal but the forward blazed wildly over.

Middleton managed to get on the scoresheet in the 61st minute but Ilkeston continued to be a threat particularly from set pieces and Carty needed a spectacular headed goalline clearance to deny Barry Woolley.

In the final minute Owen was denied by Love from 10 yards with a right foot shot that lacked conviction much like City at the moment.

WORCESTER: McDonnell 5, Davies 6 (Owen 54, 6), Jones 5 (Carty 46, 6) Heeley 6, Shail 6, Holloway 6, Middleton 5, Foy 6, Webster 6, H Counsell 7 (Hadley 81), Wilde 5.