COWLEY’S BOYS MAKE THEIR POINT NLP STAR
THE Imps refused to let Tranmere Rovers steal a march on their title ambitions by reinforcing their lead at the top and manager Danny Cowley summed up the day, saying: ‘If you can’t score, don’t concede’.
After a tumultuous 3-3 draw at Sincil Bank back in November it was perhaps inevitable that, in front of the Shots’ biggest crowd of the season, these two teams – who now boast 33 clean sheets between them – would once again give 100 per cent in drawing a blank, which only partially served their respective ambitions.
Instead, both managers found ample compliments for the opposition.
“I was pleased with our performance, but credit to Aldershot, they’re a really good team and they gave us a tough game,” admitted Cowley.
“But I thought that we more than matched them. We’re a little disappointed, because we had quite a few good chances and we needed to be more clinical, but we’ve scored goals all season so I’m not going to criticise my players for missing chances.”
For Aldershot Town it was a ninth successive game without defeat to confirm their best run of form since Gary Waddock led them to the Blue Square Premier title in 2008.
“That was a proper football match, between two good teams going toe-to-toe, and it’s a good point for us,” smiled Waddock, who as a player would doubtless have relished such a combative afternoon.
“It’s been a difficult week for us, playing with ten men for an hour at Eastleigh on Tuesday, and I think we’ve done remarkably well against the league leaders.”
The Imps started in typically domineering fashion. Within five seconds of kickoff, Matt Rhead left Will Evans in a groggy heap on the floor and that largely set the tone for the opening 45 minutes, as ample endeavor from both sides was punctuated by a slew of free-kicks.
The visitors held sway in territory and possession, but for all of their pressure and dangerous deliveries from the flanks they failed to unduly test Jake Cole. Instead it was Aldershot Town who fashioned the half’s few efforts on target.
Scott Rendell’s closerange header was saved, and Farman fumbled Mensah’s flashing drive around the post, whilst minutes after the restart the goalkeeper saved Shamir Fenelon’s low shot.
Rhead soon forced Cole to make a block at the near-post but, sliding in to meet Mensah’s teasing low cross, lively second debut for the Imps after returning on loan from Scunthorpe – curled a shot wide with only Cole to beat. Cole again saved his side in making a fine smothering save after Callum Reynolds gifted Nathan Arnold the ball 30 yards out, but perhaps the best opportunity came in stoppage-time, as Sean Raggett met Billy Knott’s corner with some force, only to be denied by a combination of Cole and a defender on the line. Cowley, nonetheless, was pleased that his side remained fully focused on the immediate task at hand with a trip to the Emirates looming ever-larger on the horizon.
“Everybody keeps telling us that next week will be the biggest challenge of our lives, but for us the biggest challenge has to be these two games,” he stressed with a trip to former side Braintree Town to come on Tuesday.
“I see them as a representation of us as people. We’re expected to have one eye on Arsenal, but we want to prove that we are really focused and determined human beings.”