Brighton gets needed point
(“The Press” Special Service) GISBORNE. A much happier New Brighton side returned to Christchurch on Saturday night. The seasides had taken a point from Gisborne City in a 1-1 draw and had fought back from a goal down after 55 minutes in a determined recovery in the later stages. “They came out of ■ the game with their heads up. I was proud of them,” the club’s emergency playercoach, Ken France, said yesterday. France in fact, was the inspiration behind Brighton’s resurgence. In his first match as player-coach, the former Christchurch United and New Zealand captain marshalled his defence superbly, got a full response from his team-mates, and made a match-saving switch from which stemmed Brighton’s equalising goal. France moved the leftback, Alan Smith, into the mid-field after Stephen Grout had given Gisborne the lead, and Smith immediately produced the support his forwards needed to keep pressure on the home team’s rearguard.
Reward came with eight minutes remaining. Warren Quirke took the ball up to the Gisborne goalkeeper Keith Bowley, dribbled it round him, and coolly hit it into an open net. This was the sign for which Brighton had been waiting. The visitors tore into Gisborne with greatly renewed purpose, and it needed all the skill of Bowley. in the main, to keep Brighton out.
Torrential rain from start to finish had its effect on the play of both sides. Largely, it reduced tile game to a slogging t match.- Even so, Brighton tried . to create movements, particu--1 larly in the second lialf. . Neither side had a player who could dictate the terms to the ■ other, so that the football was t largely unimaginative. But this did not detract from the renewed I vigour and determination BrighIton displayed “Few teams come away from I Gisborne with a point. Had the luck in the final stages gone our 5 way we would have had two.” France said. “In those circumstances. I cannot be anything else but pleased with the result and with the response of g the team.”
Brighton gets needed point
Press, Issue 33840, 12 May 1975, Page 20
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