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Ilkeston Line up:-
1.
Turner 2.
Knowles 4. Swinscoe 5. Lever 3. Atkinson 7.
Hindley 8. Johnson 6. Laws 11.
Eshelby 9.
Thompson 10. O'Connor 15. Stant for Eshelby 45 mins 14. Jervis for Atkinson 67 mins 12. Holyoak for Laws 75 mins
Yellow Cards Stant 80 mins Red Cards none Debuts none
In the early stages the visitors showed why they have had such a good season and looked much the stronger team. The Robins gradually forced their way back into the game and Chris Thompson came closest to opening the scoring. On 28 minutes Aaron O'Connor produced an excellent cross which Chris Thompson headed just past the post. Ryan Hindley also came close after his cross eluded Aaron O'Connor. Despite this early promise the Robins fell behind after 42 minutes. Kris Bowler scored from a freekick from 20 yards with a low drive which beat the wall and Ross Turner and fell just inside the post to put the Gladiators 1-0 up. Manager Phil Stant responded by bringing himself on at half time in place of the ineffective Paul Eshelby. Chris Thompson almost provided the breakthrough when he cleverly wriggled free and put the ball across the face of the goal but alas no Ilkeston forward was there to apply the finishing touch. The Robins continued to press forward and Marc Laws had a shot well saved by Matt Taylor but minutes later the Robins had a reminder of how potent the visitors attack could be when Steve Taylor broke clear and fed Danny Holland who should have done better than shooting over the bar. On 61 minutes Ryan Hindley then shot into the side netting after getting into a good positon but three mins later he was put clean through by Aaron O'Connor but just as he prepared to shoot a Matlock defender foiled with an excellent last ditch tackle. Within minutes Aaron O'Connor himself broke through but shot over as it started to look like it was not going to be Ilkeston's night. Ilkeston continued to probe for an equaliser but started to leave gaps at the back and on 74 minutes Matlock went 2-0 up when Steve Taylor scored after excellent work by Danny Holland. Ilkeston's reply was immediate and as Phil Stant shot home from eight yards the home fans thought they were back in the game. Unfortunately the linesman had spotted an infringement and the goal was disallowed. At this stage tempers started to become and there was a series of niggling off the ball incidents and eventually Phil Stant was shown the yellow card. The Robins had one more good chance but Mark Lever saw his excellent strike cannon off the keeper legs and away to safety. With four minutes left on the clock Mtalock counterattacked and Steven Warne ran at a tiring Ilkeston defence and slotted a shot past the despairing dive of Ross Turner to make it 3-0 to Gladiators.
Ilkeston have a mountain to climb in the second leg but Manager Phil Stant (pictured left) will be busy persuading his squad that they are capable pulling off a miracle victory. The heightened tension and friction towards the end of the first leg demonstrate that whatever the score there is still a lot of pride to play for at Causeway Lane which should make it a very interesting game.
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Ilkeston
Town were forced to replace cup tied Liam Walshe and Andy Evans as
they faced high riding Matlock Town in the first leg of the Derbyshire
Senior Cup Final. As expected Aaron O'Connor (pictured left)
filled in up front and Marc Laws returned in midfield.
The
3-0 scoreline does not reflect the amount of possession and territorial advantage
enjoyed by Ilkeston Town particularly in the second half. At 1-0 down the
Robins were still in with a chance and Matlock looked happy for the score
to stay at that at full time. Ilkeston created numerous chances in the
second but failed to convert any. Matlock on the other hand had four chances
and scored three of them. This was the main difference between the sides
in that the Gladiators have two excellent strikers in Steve Taylor and
Danny Holland who will always cause problems for defenders with their
movement and finishing. 
