United fall in Dreyer’s last stand (20.11.04)

SATURDAY'S 5-1 hammering at the hands of Cambridge City set a new low for Maidenhead United, as their calamitous season continued to teeter towards the brink.
Before the game, manager John Dreyer promised a return to basics for this clash, saying: “It would be nice to scrap hard and win 1-0.
“We’ll work hard and hopefully not give them a freebie.”
Unfortunately, what materialised was a performance characterised by basic mistakes and a basic lack of desire from a depressed and injury-ravaged squad – and a plethora of soft goals.
Only Craig O’Connor, Barrie Matthews and Bryan Smith seemed to understand what was required of them, as the rest of the team simply went through the motions, without any genuine interest in the eventual outcome.
In stark contrast, City looked fully charged and ready for action, an attitude which saw them grab a deserved lead on 16 minutes, when midfielder Rob Miller scampered through United’s static defence before squaring the ball to the unmarked Dave Sadler for a simple tap in.
Two minutes later it was 2-0, after Dale Binns jinked in from the left wing and rolled the ball to Robbie Simpson, who turned and fired home unopposed.
Any faint glimmer of hope for a fightback was forcefully extinguished on the half-hour mark, when Binns escaped his marker again and whipped a sublime ball into the box.
With three strikers closing on the cross, midfield dynamo Carl Williams sprinted in at the far post to blast the ball past the stranded Andy Goldman.
Goldman redeemed himself by making two very respectable saves before the interval, but the game was already lost.
After the break the Magpies eventually showed some fighting spirit and even managed to get a couple of efforts on target.
The first saw Brendan Gallen’s goal-bound header scrambled away.
However, the best chance fell to Simon Patterson on 59 minutes, when he found himself one-on-one with the keeper.
Unfortunately, his tame lob was woefully inadequate, as City keeper Duncan Roberts snatched it out of the air with consumate ease.
Three minutes later Cambridge confirmed their supremacy, when Richard Scott swung a free-kick into the box for Sadler to control and then poke home from close range, with the defence frozen in their tracks.
Minutes later Simpson rejected the chance to shoot into an open goal, then missed the target with a free header. But there was to be no such let off on 69 minutes, when Binns waltzed through United’s broken defences then squared the ball for Simpson to crash home.
Maidenhead staged a late rally in the last quarter of an hour and restored some pride on 78 minutes when Brendan Gallen scored from the penalty spot, following a blatant foul on Smith.
Craig O’Connor then hit the post with a snap shot, Patterson fired a wild shot over the top, and Daryl Elford had a chip scooped off the bar.
But there was to be no salvation for the Magpies, as the referee finally relented and blew for full-time.
As the whistle rang around the ground there were quiet rumblings of discontent from the home fans.
However, any complaints were minor, as the York Road faithful appear to have become accustomed to disappointment and defeat.
To close on a positive note, with morale at rock bottom, the only way is up.

Midfielder Barrie Matthews challenges for the ball for the Magpies on Saturday. Ref:87147/17