Nailers Get First Win Of The Season

After two draws and a defeat in the Evo-Stik Northern Premier Division One South, Belper earned their first three points in a close game with the Moatmen.

The cliché of a game of two halves was certainly made for games like these, with the Nailers dominating the first half of the fixture before Gresley came back in the second half, making it difficult for the Nailers

The game started perfectly for Belper, with Alex Steadman giving his side the lead just two minutes in. The Nailers trend of scoring early goals continued, with Josh Barr-Rostron scoring within three minutes in Belper’s last game.

This lead was doubled 21 minutes in as Eric Graves lobbed the oncoming Gresley keeper from outside the box. There was some suspicion of hand ball from Graves, but it was difficult to see with the Gresley defender impeding the referee’s view.

Despite the early Belper dominance, Gresley created a huge chance towards the end of the half. But their luck seemed to be out as they hit the crossbar twice with one attack.

After the extremely positive first half for Belper, Gresley came back into the game in the second half. This could be put down to the visible slope at The Moat Ground being in the home sides favour for the second half.

Gresley pushed throughout the half, but struggled to find a breakthrough until Reece Morris put in a superb low ball to give Matt Melbourne the simplest of finishes.

The home side’s high pressure continued, but the Nailers dealt with everything that Gresley threw at them excellently, holding out to win the game 2-1.

This gives the Nailers their first win of the season and a good platform to build on. Another positive for Belper was seeing Kieran O’Connell get a first start since his serious knee injury, playing for 50 minutes for being substituted.

The Nailers welcome Stocksbridge Park Steels to the Marston’s Stadium on Saturday, as we search for our first home victory of the season.