Bury II 5, Gorleston 1GORLESTON travelled to Bury with only 10 players following late call-offs and were unlucky to meet a home side on top of their game.

Bury II 5, Gorleston 1

GORLESTON travelled to Bury with only 10 players following late call-offs and were unlucky to meet a home side on top of their game.

However, for the first half Gorleston matched their opponents in every department and could well have snatched two early goals which might have made all the difference.

First Malcolm Berry spurned an open goal and then a well-worked short corner variation by Jamie Higginbotham saw Bury in all sorts of trouble.

But as the game went on the home side settled and began to use their extra man to better advantage, drawing the Gorleston defence to mark individuals before crossing to unmarked players.

No surprise then, when shortly before the interval centre forward Ian Kanforth got free to fire home from the top of the circle, leaving Barney King helpless.

The second half was a completely different affair.

Within three minutes Jonathan Parry had doubled Bury's lead, and when Ian Kanforth again broke to score from the restart Gorleston were really up against it.

But their defence, marshalled gamely by Andrew Lilly and Nick Mobbs, held their shape and when Damien Bunting burst through the centre to score his first league goal for Gorleston after 20 minutes it seemed possible a comeback might yet be on the cards.

But then disaster struck - first running into the boundary fence Mark Vaudin injured his shoulder and had to leave the field and almost immediately Damien Bunting blotted his copybook and was sin-binned.

With only eight Gorleston players now on the field Bury won a short corner which their captain Pali Surdkur totally miscued - the bounce of the ball completely fooling Barney King who deflected it into his own net.

The final moments saw Damien return but with Andrew Lilly then yellow carded for a repeat professional foul, Bury rubbed salt into the wound of his absence with James Thurlow getting his name on the scoresheet.

But it was by no means a bad performance from Gorleston in the circumstances. They will take heart from their display, if disappointed by the final scoreline.

Next the visitors to Cliff Park are last season's Division Four champions Ipswich IV X1, and Gorleston will be anxious to record a victory to stabilise their mid-table position.

Push-back is at 2.30pm.