New-look Peterborough Sports defy the odds to pull of a superb National League North victory thanks to an unlikely hat-trick hero
Peterborough Sports shrugged off a mad couple of days to pull off a superb National League North win over Alfreton at PIMS Park on Tuesday night.
There was plenty of forecast doom and gloom after the loss of two club stalwarts, as well two very fine players, and the need to hastily assemble a side to take on one of the division’s strongest sides.
It wasn’t therefore a total surprise to see Alfreton take the lead in the first-half, and with 10 minutes to go, words were being prepared to describe a plucky defeat for a Sports team who seen plenty of problems thrown their way in recent weeks. A 1-0 loss wouldn’t have seemed so bad given the circumstances.
But the club’s famed spirit and attitude didn’t disappear with a couple of star names. It kept Sports in touch, helped by some fine goalkeeping by Peter Crook, before joint-bosses Michael Gash and Luke Steele decided to throw forward Michael Gyasi on for Tuesday afternoon signing Tyler Winters.
It’s fair to say Gyasi hasn’t been a roaring success in terms of goalscoring since his summer arrival from Boston United. In fact he hadn’t contributed a National League goal despite some industrious displays, but he delivered when it was needed tonight. He levelled the game with a brilliant 82nd minute volley and he was in the right place at the right time for an empty net shot after a rash dash from his area by the Alfreton goalkeeper on 91 minutes.
And Gyasi wasn’t finished as a 95th minute penalty have him the chance of a hat-trick which he took to deliver a vital three points. It appeared even more important after the game as many of the teams around Sports in the table also won. The city side remain 20th, a place and three points clear of the drop zone ahead of two long trips to Southport on Saturday and to Darlington on Tuesday, November 12.
Sports gave debuts to Port Vale loanee central defender Ben Lomax and striker Winters, who made the opposite journey to Dion Sembie-Ferris and Dan Lawlor by leaving Spalding for the big city. There was a home debut for Barnsley teenager Bayley McCann and new winger Max Booth also made his first appearance, albeit for only a couple of minutes.
There were understandable teething problems as Alfreton struck the post in the first minute, but Sports enjoyed plenty of good moments going forward as well with Kaine Felix going close before the visitors took the lead in the 36th minute through Jake Day who found the bottom corner from the edge of the penalty area.
Alfreton looked in control, but couldn’t find a second goal. Crook saved well twice in quick succession midway through the second-half. Some solid defending on the edge of the penalty area also kept the visitors at bay.
And then Sports sent Gyasi on, and the rest is history.
Sports: Crook, Putman, Fryatt, Lomax, McCann, Jarvis, Van Lier (sub Bland, 77 mins), Alban-Jones, Gallagher (sub Booth, 90 + 6 mins), Felix, Winters (sub Gyasi, 80 mins). Unused subs: Elsom, Goodman.