Much changed Gorleston side lose 4-0 at Godmanchester
An aerial due during last Saturday's match between Godmanchester Rovers and Gorleston Picture: DAVID HARDY - Credit: Archant
A shaky start gave an inexperienced Gorleston side an uphill task almost from the kick-off on Saturday.
The Greens came into the tie buoyed by an FA Cup win but, with a large number of players unavailable for various reasons, Ricci Butler's first league game back in the dugout saw seven changes.
Sam Ellis, Kyle Ingram, George Yusuff, Jordan Cantwell, Aaron Sanders, Sean Perfect and Connor Ingram were all absent.
Luke Goreham, Brady Philpott and Ross Gilfedder returned to the starting line-up, Declan Allan and Cameron Barnes came in for their first appearances of the season and Trae Duffus and Thomas Thornton were handed their debuts.
Within a minute of kick-off Connor Milligan was called in to action, pushing away a James Hall free- kick. The Greens responded with a Joel Watts shot which was straight at the keeper before Rovers opened the scoring in the fourth minute. A corner from the left was floated into the box where Jonny Hall had a free header which he planted back across Milligan into the net.
Again Gorleston responded and, in the seventh minute, Gilfedder hit a shot straight at the Goddy keeper. The keeper wasted no time in putting his team on the front foot and, within 30 seconds, the ball was in the back of the Gorleston net again when it fell nicely into the path of Harrison Radwell to finish into the bottom corner.
The Greens did have the ball in the net in the 28th minute. The best bit of football from either side saw Gorleston play some lovely one touch stuff with Matty Brown the instigator. He played a one two with Gilfedder and then calmly finished past the keeper. The Greens thought they were back in the game but the linesman was flagging for offside.
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Four minutes later Gilfedder beat the offside call and bore down on goal but scuffed his left foot shot across the face of goal.
Four minutes into the second half, Rovers were allowed to cross far too easily from their right into the box where James Hall rose to nod home.
The hosts made it four on the hour when Harry McGregor spotted Milligan off his line and tried his luck with a 30 yard lob which dipped nicely just under the bar.
The final half an hour was uneventful with Rovers comfortable and Gorleston still trying.
Duffus put in a great block but injured his knee in the process and had to be stretchered off. Milligan tipped over a James Hall shot and Dino Tabakovic saw his low drive in injury-time tipped wide by the keeper.
Gorleston: Milligan, Allan, Brown (c), Duffus (Cottingham 73), Burrage, Barnes, Watts (Harrison 68), Goreham, Gilfedder, Thornton (Tabakovic 55), Philpott.
