MAGPIES STILL FLYING HIGHEST
KEVIN Nolan was delighted with Notts County’s second-half performance as they kept top spot in League Two with a convincing win over Cheltenham.
The Magpies opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark when Jorge Grant finished superbly before Carl Winchester equalised for the visitors.
Danny Wright then hit the bar with a header for the Robins only for Grant to double Notts’ lead with a deflected freekick.
Shaun Brisley then sealed the win with a header and Magpies boss Nolan was thrilled with the way his side went about their business.
“I was delighted with the three points and I thought they were well deserved,” he said.
“It could have been a few more, although they had a couple of chances after halftime which I wasn’t too happy about.
“We got away with it, but the way the lads responded to that and the way they cleared the game out was fantastic.
“They had a lot of threats which I thought we dealt with very well.
“They are a big side, they put the ball in the right areas and do all the right things.
“Their goal gave them belief, but the lads’ response in the second half was brilliant.”
Notts took the lead when a fine move opened up the visitors’ defence which saw Carl Dickinson’s crossfield pass nodded down by Brisley to Jon Stead.
Stead then spotted Grant in space and he steered in a terrific finish into the far corner.
But that lead lasted just five minutes before Winchester capped off a fine move, drilling in from outside of the box.
Wright then looped a header onto the bar, before Grant restored Notts’ lead with a freekick which took an almighty deflection to wrong-foot Scott Flinders.
Brisley then made the points safe when he benefited from an excellent set-piece routine as Richard Duffy provided a neat flick at the near post.
Cheltenham had chances to make it nervy for the hosts, but manager Gary Johnson felt naivety cost them.
“You can see why Notts County are at the top, especially with the front two Shola Ameobi and Jon Stead,” he said. “If they had played a few more games, they would probably have a few more points.
“But I felt we dealt with them okay. It was just little bits of naivety that proved costly in the end.
“The second goal took a deflection and you can’t legislate for that.
“It went in the opposite corner and we were unlucky with that.
“Their third goal nearly puts it out of your reach.
“But we had chances after that. We gave it a go at the end but I think our fate will be from the games we face from now until January. We want to end it being above those teams we play.”
STAR MAN JORGE GRANT Notts County