Match Report

Tolu’s 73rd minute header rescues priceless point after Priorymen produce strong second half revival

Thornaby 1, Guisborough Town 1

(Northern League – Division One)

A classic ‘game of two halves’ was fiercely fought out between Teesside derby rivals Thornaby and Guisborough Town on Tuesday night before the Priorymen came from behind with a Toluwani Osiyemi goal rescuing a vital point for promotion-chasing Guisborough.

Guisborough were decidedly second best in a lack-lustre first half display and Thornaby took a deserved 1-0 lead in the 17th minute when a Joe Kennedy shot from just outside the penalty area took a deflection to give goalkeeper Ryan Catterick no chance.

Guisborough looked disjointed for most of the first half with too many hopeful lofted balls up front being easily defended by Thornaby.

Guisborough Manager Nathan Haslam admitted that words were spoken in the Guisborough dressing room during the interval and it seemed to have the desired effect as the Priorymen emerged for the second half looking much more like their normal selves.

In the first 15 minutes of the second period, the Priorymen literally peppered the Thornaby goal with shots and headers but home goalkeeper Sam Taylor was in absolutely outstanding form saving a succession of Guisborough efforts from both close range and distance.

But it was exactly the reaction team boss Nathan had clearly wanted from his team – yet despite their overwhelming superiority in a terrific second half turnaround, Guisborough had to wait until the 73rd minute before all their pressure finally paid off.

And it was winger Toluwani Osiyemi who was Town’s saviour, getting on the end of a cross to head home from close range and finally beat Taylor who had looked literally invincible up until then.

After the match Manager Nathan commented:  “It was a strange game in many respects.  We just weren’t at it in the first half and frankly just weren’t good enough.  We had words in the changing room at the interval and we started the second half like a house on fire and maintained that for most of the rest of the game.

“It was only some great Thornaby goalkeeping and their defenders putting their bodies on the line that stopped us winning the game outright in the end.

“I’ve got to give Thornaby a lot of credit tonight but when you ask for a reaction as we did during the interval and then go back out and literally pepper the Thornaby goal with shots and headers that was very pleasing – it was like the Alamo!

PSYCHOLOGICAL PLUS!

“For Thornaby, it was a massive well-earned point but for us it was a couple of points dropped.  But in the context of it all, we haven’t lost the game and that’s a big psychological plus for us.

“That vastly-improved second half performance is how we need to be moving forward for the rest of the season and we’ll continue to take each game as they come so we move on to our final home league match of the season this coming Saturday against Crook.

“We know that anybody can beat anybody at any given time in the league at this stage of the season and we’ve got to be on our mettle every week and tonight’s game has given us that little wake up call which we all need from time to time.

“We might think we’ve got a great chance of winning the title especially since the West Allotment Celtic resignation from the league issue but we’ve just got to put that to one side and see the job through and to do that we need to be better,” added Nathan.

Nathan praised Guisborough goal scorer Tolu, saying he is a “menace” to defences and he bravely played on through the pain barrier after injuring his shoulder before being forced to come off the field.

Looking ahead to the Crook Town match on Saturday, Nathan said his team would be hoping to finish on a high after such a fantastic home league record this season.  “But it will be a case of another team coming to try and take points off us, so from now on we need to make each game our sole focus as they come along on at a time.”

Report by Bill Perfitt.