Worksop Town 0-1 Matlock Town

But it was something of a struggle for them against ten men with the Tigers having had centre half Matt Wilson sent off for a high challenge on Steve Warne in the 57th minute.

Matlock seldom used the extra man to any great effect with the ball spending too much time up in the air in a scrappy game which Worksop may well feel aggrieved to have lost.

Retaining the same line up which had outplayed Eastwood in their preceeding fixture, Matlock looked sharp in trhe opening exchanges.

After they had cleared an early Tigers corner, they broke at speed and Ross Hannah streaked away down the left only to see his teasing low cross well cut out by the long leg of Andy Boyce who had a fine game at the heart of the Worksop back four.

Hannah then linked well with Dene Cropper to force a corner before following an untidy scramble in the Worksop penalty box, Liam King was tripped right on the eighteen yard line but Hannah disappointingly lifted his free kick high over the bar,

King then ran beyond the back of the Tigers defence to set up Cropper but Steve Hernandez comfortably fielded the tall striker's header.

Matlock were on top without making goalkeeper Hernandez work with Ryan Laight firing yards too high after Ashley Foyle had knocked down a corner.

Cropper did go close on 37 minutes with a left footed daisycutter which beat Hernandez's dive but also his left hand post, the move being set up by Gary Webster's slick pass on his 200th Town appearance.

A half which promised far more ended with King being well placed to hack clear a powerful strike from Worksop skipper Paul Stansfield before play was back at the other end as Hannah swooped on to an astute pass from Ryan Davis but again Boyce proved to be a stumbling block as the defender did just enough to knock Hannah off his stride and the finish straight at Hernandez lacked power.

In a clash which had lacked any real invention so far, Worksop's Kevin Sanasay nearly provided a spark early in ther second period.

He was fortunate when the ball was deflected into his path and spotting Andy Richmond off his line, a sublime 50 yard lobbed effort followed which dropped just too late. Had it gone in it would have been a candidate for goal of the season!

But generally the match failed to reach mediocrity as passes went astray.

Boyce stupidly got himself booked with his failure to give up the ball for a Matlock throw and the Tigers showed their teeth once too often when Wilson, on loan from Alfreton, went in high and rashly on Warne on the left.

Wakefield official Ricky Wootton immediately flashed a red card and now surely Matlock would stamp their authority on the match.

But as so often happens, the team reduced to ten men become galvanised and ironically it was Worksop who created the clearer chances in a game which in essence, had 0-0 written all over it.

Cropper knocked a Lee Featherstone cross into Webster's path but the Wirksworth winger's shot was high and not very handsomely off target, before a mix up in the visitors defence nearly gave Worksop a fine chance to make hay.

Much travelled striker Kirk Jackson flicked his shot wide before Sanasay ran at the Town defence before driving off target.

In a rare moment of real danger for the Hucknall based side's defence, Warne raced down the left and Boyce again came to the rescue as Hannah was looking to pounce.

Sanasay set up Stansfield as Worksop were comfortably giving as much as they were getting, with the shot flashing narrowly wide before winger David Cockerill was instrumental in the result at both ends of the pitch in the space of sixty seconds.

Neither goalkeeper had been seriously extended until Richmond did well to beat away a Cockerill header, but Matlock broke swiftly and at last kept the ball effectively at ground level as substitute Simon Barraclough released Warne on the right.

Warne's pace took him beyond Cockerill whose trailing leg caught the Gladiator in full flight for a stonewall penalty.

Barraclough drove under Hernandez's dive for the winner to end Town's long wait for a competitive away win at the seventeenth time of asking.

All in all not a game to linger in the memory. Positives for Matlock are the result and a clean sheet with the defence starting to gel more as a unit.

Joint boss Phil Brown admitted that Matlock have played far better this season and lost.

"Our two wins have come from our two worst performances," he conceded.

The late winner somehow evens up the disappointment of conceding a goal at the same stage of the game they dominated against Eastwood when two points were lost.

The result here was all important.

MATLOCK TOWN: Richmond, Davis, Featherstone, Harrison (Thorpe 76), Laight, Foyle, Webster (Barraclough 74), Warne, Cropper (Benger 89), Hannah, King. Other subs: Foster, Federenko

REFEREE: R Wootton (Wakefield)
ATTENDANCE: 230
STAR MAN: Ashley Foyle