Gainsborough Trinity 1-1 Guiseley

Gainsborough Trinity 1-1 Guiseley

Northern Premier League

Tuesday 27th September 2022

A night out in Gainsborough… something which I’m sure everyone has dreamed about at some point in life!

My primary reason for going to this game (other than to get out the house) was because both clubs have signed a few names who I’m familiar with from watching academy/development football over the past few years.

In Gainsborough’s ranks, there’s a Doncaster connection in Ethan Bojang (who starred for Gambia at the U20 AFCON during his scholarship) and is currently under contract at Trinity. Curtis Durose is on loan from Rotherham (and I’ve seen him previously at U18s level), whilst Scunthorpe’s Fin Shrimpton is someone I planned to watch during his brief stint at Cleethorpes last year - only for him to be recalled 24 hours beforehand. Typical.

Guiseley also have a habit of taking youngsters on loan from professional clubs. In their current crop is Bradford’s Charlie Wood (who stood out in his spell at Ossett United), whereas Joe Ackroyd (another player I attempted to watch on loan at MFK Vyskov in 2021/22 - only for him to be an unused substitute) was unveiled as a new loan arrival from Barnsley only a few hours before this game.

That was good timing from myself, for once, because It wasn’t until after I’d sorted out a ticket for this game that I found out about ‘Ackers’ involvement.

Having seen Barnsley’s U21s involved in a highly-technical 1-1 draw with Peterborough earlier in the day, this encounter under the beaming floodlights at the Northolme Ground couldn’t have contrasted anymore starkly to that one.

That’s because this was feisty. It was physical. It was rough and ready at times - just ask Clayton Donaldson who was involved in a proper old school tussle with Guiseley’s centre-halves all night long. The intensity was strong, players weren’t allowed any time whatsoever on the ball like they always are at development level and, as a consequence, the ball was up in the air far more than it was down on the ground.

Exposure to games of this kind is what every young player needs if they’re to stand a chance of forging a decent career for themselves. It’s far better than development stuff because it's real football - there's no hiding place and I've got every respect for those lads mentioned (who've all got level-headed attitudes which is also very telling) who've thrown themselves out of their comfort zone and embraced this challenge.

None of those who played performed too badly either.

Fin Shrimpton has grown in stature and strength since I last saw him, looks every bit as if he can handle himself and he linked things up with his passing reasonably well at times. Joe Ackroyd showed the energy and enthusiasm to cover every blade of grass, not tire, and deliver a full-blooded display which is typical of what he’s all about, whereas Curtis Durose had an effort saved in the first half, flashed a good ball into the box in the second and really came into things more after half-time to have a decent impact - and it’s clearly testament to his own work that he’s been nominated for Trinity’s ‘Player Of The Month’ for September. Ethan Bojang and Charlie Wood were unused subs.

That said, it was a strange old game and at the end of an evenly-matched first 45 minutes which was high on physicality and where Gainsborough tried to play long diagonal balls a bit too often, the visiting Lions roared into a lead. A ball into the box, coupled with some static and unresponsive defending, saw the ball drop for Mo Qasim who finished from eight yards.

0-1 at the interval.

Trinity looked much more at ease with themselves after the break as they got the ball down and knocked it around with a bit of purpose - although their equaliser was a well-worked counter-attack which ended as Liam Waldock made a run in-behind to get on the end of a through ball and buried his effort across the visiting ‘keeper. 1-1.

Tom Cursons (who came on at half time for Jack Dyche) put in a real lively shift on the left-hand side and did well, except the shot which cleared the stand and ended up in Rita’s front garden on the street opposite, as Trinity pressed for three points.

However, slowly but surely, the war of attrition re-emerged in the latter stages and there wasn’t much between the teams. Nicky Walker forced a shot as Guiseley went close, Cursons almost slid in to connect with Durose’s near-post ball at the opposite end but ultimately both teams had to settle for a point apiece.

The result extends Gainsborough’s run going into Saturday’s local derby with Worksop Town in the FA Cup Third Qualifying Round which will probably see a bumper crowd inside the Northolme, whereas Guiseley host Warrington Rylands over at Nethermoor Park.

Next Up: Pontefract Collieries (U18s) vs Scunthorpe United (U18s) in the FA Youth Cup Second Qualifying Round on Thursday... because a night out in ‘Ponte Carlo’ is even better than a night out in glamorous Gainsborough.