BISHOP & KNAPPER START WITH CUP WIN

29th October 2002

Ilkeston Town 2 Banbury United 1  Att 136 Dr Martens League Cup 1st Round

Ilkeston line up:- 

New manager Charlie Bishop went into his first game in charge with Mat McKenzie restored to the starting line up in place of Simon Coleman and Anton Foster replaced the injured Scott Dundas. 

In front of a very sparse crowd Ilkeston started brightly with Leon Kelly's power and pace worrying the Banbury defence. The Robins continued to press forward and got their reward after 18 minutes when Ian Robinson's took a deflection and beat the visitors keeper to put Ilkeston Town 1-0 up. 

Banbury however refused to give up and forced Matt Nurse into making a number of excellent saves. Ilkeston though continued to create chances and Leon Kelly got into good positions on several occasions only to be thwarted by the excellent Banbury keeper Simon Tricker.

Banbury got back into the game with only eight minutes remaining when George Redknapp capitalised on a defensive mistake to equalise and send the tie into extra time.

Both sides created good chances in the added time but Banbury started to tire and when Anton Foster was bought down Leon Kelly made up for his earlier misses by converting the spot kick.

Although this wasn't an excellent performance it was in the end a game won through hard work. Banbury were a neat side who lacked a physical presence.  New signing Chris Freestone made an impressive debut and Leon Kelly looked dangerous and had a fine game despite missing a number of good chances. Ian Robinson was inspirational in midfield until he tired in the second half but the WhiteBallProject Man of the Match goes to Joe Atkinson who had an excellent game at left back.

Ilkeston now have two very difficult league games against Worcester City and Dover Athletic and they will be a measure of the task facing Charlie Bishop and John Knapper. Getting anything from these two games will be seen as a bonus and will give the Robins fresh hope of avoiding relegation.

ILSON STUNNED BY STAFFORD

26th October 2002

Ilkeston Town 0 Stafford Rangers 5  Att 903 FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round

Ilkeston line up:- 

Free for all!	Atkinson pushes forward	Ilson go for goal

Without a manager Ilkeston Town promoted reserve team boss Morris Samuels to look after the team until an appointment can be made. Jo Atkinson and Scott Dundas were recalled to the team after last weeks 6-2 defeat at Hednesford.

Stafford Rangers boosted by a large and very vocal following started the brighter of the two teams but soon the game became scrappy with some aggressive from both sides. However it was the Robins who picked up the first two bookings with Paul Kiely and Emeka Nwadike going into the ref's notebook for two very clumsy challenges.

Stafford inevitably broke the deadlock on 33 minutes when James Whitehead was caught in possession and from the resulting cross Jo Atkinson diverted the ball past his own keeper. Ilkeston had a chance to equalise when Scott Dundas was put through but his shot was just wide.

In the second half Stafford gained full control going two up after 48 minutes when Craig Lovatt scored after Scott Dundas had miskicked on the edge of the Stafford area. The visitors broke away and sliced through a floundering Ilkeston defence.  Stafford got their third goal through Robert Heath from close range and then added two more through Davidson and Bailey in the closing stages of the game.

Ilkeston largest home gate of the season had almost by the end of the game as most of the Robins fans has already left the ground leaving the Stafford fans to celebrate a crushing victory.

To say the club are at a low ebb is an understatement and there is a crisis of confidence in many areas.

Few of the team that played today did themselves justice. Both full backs had difficult games. The centre halves although dominanat in the air looked slow on the ground. Scott Dundas and Ryan Ford struggled to get into the game and Paul Kiely could not find his usual deft touch. Leon Kelly worked hard but WhiteBallProject's Man of the Match goes to Ian Robinson who never gave up.

Whoever takes over at Ilkeston will inherit a squad who either need to be motivated or moved on. At present there are too may players hiding during games. Stafford's players today all wanted the ball and were able to make runs to help their colleagues. For some reason the Robins are either unable or unwilling to make themselves available to receive the ball.

In the end instead of planning an away day at Shrewsbury Ilkeston Town have got Dr Martens League Cup against Banbury United to look forward to on Wednesday.

JOHN'S REIGN COMES TO AN END   Managing Director Dave Pullan announced this evening that John McGinlay is no longer manager of Ilkeston Town Football Club. The decision was made by mutual consent on Monday. The club have made no decisions about a replacement or who will be looking after the team on Saturday when Ilkeston entertain Stafford Rangers in the FA Cup. We also believe that Sean O'Connor and Andy Mason have also left the club. John has been dogged by a poor start to the season but his team have excelled in the FA Cup scoring thirteen goals in two games. The final straw seems to have been the nature of the second half collapse against Hednesford when Ilkeston let in four goals in as many minutes. We are led to believe that all the players are under contract and will stay with the club at least until a successor has been announced.
	Ex Boss John McGinlay

BIZARRE FIVE MINUTE COLLAPSE SHATTERS ROBINS

19th October 2002

Hednesford Town 6 Ilkeston Town 2  Att 545 Dr Martens League

Ilkeston line up:- 

Emeka Nwadike	Hednesford under pressure	Ryan Ford comes close

At half-time I wrote the first part of my match report before I could finish the complexion of the game had changed completely. I have decided the publish the first half report as I wrote it.

In the excellent but sparsely populated Cross Keys Park Ilkeston Town made the early running forcing a series of early corners. Emeka Nwadike came close on a number of occasions. The Robins continued to dominate the early possession without creating any further clear cut chances until the 37th minute when against the run of play Hednesford took the lead through Chris Brindley. A Shaun Wray corner eluded the Ilkeston defence and was met firmly by Brindley's head at the far post. Ilkeston Town previously looking so secore started to wobble and headed for the half time oranges hoping to regroup.

Little could prepare the traveling Ilkeston support for the chaos the arrival of Hednesford's substitute Steven Piearce would create. On 47 minutes he opened his account with an excellent shot from the edge of the area after the Ilkeston defence failed to close him down. Two minutes later Graham Lancashire made it 3-0 when a series of defensive blunders left him with an easy chance to score. Within seconds of the restart Piearce got his second when his shot was deflected past the bemused Matt Nurse by an Ilkeston defender. Piearce inflicted further distress on the Robins after another minute of token resistance he volleyed home after Ilkeston had failed to react to a quickly taken free kick. So with fifty minutes on the clock Ilkeston found themselves 5-0 down and in danger of falling to a defeat of what used to be called cricket score proportions. Piearce had score a hat trick in four minutes and had only been on the field six minutes.

Fortunately for the Robins Hednesford took their foot off the gas and Ilkeston slowly recovered their composure. Manager John McGinlay bought on Richard Mitchell and reverted to a 3-4-3 formation. Ilkeston again started to have the bulk of the possession and have numerous missed opportunities Paul Kiely pulled a goal back for the Robins and Leon Kelly made it 5-2 in the closing minutes. However any thoughts of making the scoreline look respectable were quashed when Shaun Wray scored an excellent goal with a long range shot in the last minute of the game.

A disastrous result in what was one of the most bizarre games involving Ilkeston Town I have ever seen. As my first half match report shows Ilkeston must have thought themselves very unlucky to be in arrears at half time. Whatever was said at half time it did not work because within minutes of the restart Ilkeston's discipline and moral was in tatters. The Robins shambolic resistance was painful to watch and with nearly forty minutes to go and 5-0 down most Ilkeston fans feared the worst. To their credit they regrouped and enjoyed the best of the possession in the last twenty minutes or so.

Picking a Man of the Match after this performance has been a nightmare. Up until the 37th minute Simon Coleman looked majestic and Barry Woolley controlled most things in the air. Having thought long and hard the WhiteBallProject Man of the Match goes to Emeka Nwadike who in the end had an half decent game overall.

Where the club and more importantly manager John McGinlay goes from here is anybody's guess. It is clear that the players have the individual ability to succeed but can they pull together as a team when things are not going smoothly?. Ilkeston have a chance against Stafford Rangers in the FA Cup next week to show that they are a team with potential rather than a bunch of individually talented players failing to convert ability into results.

At the moment if things do not improve dramatically Ilkeston Town will be almost certainly relegated. Hednesford Town are not a great side in fact they are one of the weaker sides Ilkeston have played and they still beat us 6-2. There will need to a lot of heart searching and tough decisions to be made before Stafford Rangers arrive next Saturday.

Ironically King's Lynn who conceded six against the Robins last week scored six themselves this week. 

It's a funny old game! Sometimes!!

KIELY HAT-TRICK SEALS CRUSHING VICTORY OVER LYNN

12th October 2002

Ilkeston Town 6 King's Lynn 1 Att 694 FA Cup 3rd Qualifying Round

Ilkeston line up:- 

Barry Woolley clears the ball	Paul Kiely scores from the spot	James Whitehead chases back

Ilkeston Town recalled Joe Atkinson to replace the injured Mat McKenzie and Ian Robinson replaced Richard Mitchell in an otherwise unchanged line up. Sporting a new kit and fresh from a lunch time pep talk from Paul Millership the Robins reverted to a 4-4-2 formation.

King's Lynn included ex Robin Paul Raynor and he helped dictate the pace of the game in the early stages as the visitors backed by a boisterous and large following looked like they were going to cause Ilkeston considerable problems. The game burst in to life on 25 minutes with Ian Robinson coming close with a header. Seconds later Paul Kiely crossed for Barry Woolley to put Ilkeston 1-0 with a well placed header. King's Lynn fought back strongly Matt Nurse made an excellent before the Robins went 2-0 up on 28 minutes. Good work by Ian Robinson on the left resulted in Scott Dundas chipping a ball for Paul Kiely to head home from close range. The Linnets were not dead yet and their vocal support regained their voices when they hit a post and forced Matt Nurse in to another excellent save. Just as the Robins appeared to have weathered the fight the defence failed to react to a ball chipped over the Ilkeston rearguard which was squared for new signing Mark Burrows to score.

After the break Ilkeston replaced the injured Leon Kelly with Richard Mitchell and Steve Coates came on for the tiring Scott Dundas. Paul Raynor was again dictating the game but after King's Lynn had a claim for spot kick ignored his frustration landed him in the referees notebook.  The visitors despair was complete when captain Glen Fluff was adjudged to have handled the ball in the area. a penalty was given and Fluff was dismissed. Paul Kiely stepped up and converted the penalty. At this point the Linnets resistance started to collapse as they pushed forward leaving themselves stretched at the back. on 60 minutes Richard Mitchell had a goal dissallowed for off side and Paul Kiely was denied his hat trick by an excellent save by Dean Greygoose in the visitors goal. Richard Mitchell eventually made it 4-1 when he chested down a high ball and score with a low drive from an acute angle. On 89 minutes Paul Kiely finally got his hat trick when good work by Joe Atkinson enabled the striker to prod the ball home. In the dying seconds James Whitehead burst through the tiring King's Lynn to send a blistering drive into the corner of the net to claim the best goal of the game and Ilkeston's sixth.

However precarious Ilkeston's position is in the league it appears to be permanent party in the cup. The performance was a devastating display of clinical finishing in the second half. King's Lynn looked to have a useful and Paul Raynor had an excellent game looking for much of the game a class apart but eventually Ilkeston just wore them down. Whatever Paul Millership said to the players over their beans on toast had the desired effect and I am sure manager John McGinlay will be looking to find out what is about the FA Cup that brings out the best in his team.

There were some good performances today Matt Nurse looked very solid and Emeka Nwadike worked tirelessly against his old club but the WhiteBallProject Man of the Match goes to Paul Kiely who just pipped the excellent Ian Robinson mainly due making one goal and scoring three.

Next Saturday Ilkeston have another chance to gain an away point at out of form Hednesford Town. 

Keep the dream alive!!