Record equalled

Press, 2 May 1988, Page 36

Record equalled

TONY SMITH

From

in Nelson

Christchurch rewrote the national soccer league record book in Nelson yesterday but the achievement was clouded by controversy.

The defending Air New Zealand league champion fought back from a 1-1 draw against a plucky Nelson United side to extend its unbeaten run to 17 games, equalling the league record set by Mount Wellington in 1982.

However, Nelson had a helping hand in Christchurch’s deserved achievement. A helping head would probably be more appropriate, as it was an own goal from the curly cranium of the Nelson striker, Shaun Rodgers, which enabled Christchurch to come from behind to force a hard-fought draw. Nelson showed no fraternal spirit towards its South Island rivals, producing a battling performance to lead 1-0 at halftime in a match dominated, and perhaps spoiled, by the referee, Mr Trevor Allesbrook.

The Wellington official, in his first year on the national league panel, made a series of perplexing decisions, changing his mind frequently.

One of his decisions could well have cost Christchurch its twelfth consecutive victory. Late in the second spell, when the scores were level, the Christchurch striker, Allan Carville, contested a ball on the edge of the Nelson area, with the burly Nelson goalkeeper, John Brydon. The two players collided, but Carville recovered to put the ball in the back of the net. Mr Allesbrook, however, whistled for a penalty for a foul on Carville by Brydon. In the ensuing break while Brydon received treatment for a knock, the linesman, Mr Peter Campbell, of Nelson, attracted the attention of the referee and indicated he had been flagging before the collision because Carville had been in an offside decision. Mr Allesbrook then changed his penalty decision into a defensive freekick to Nelson, an aboutface which angered the Christchurch players and their usually unflappable coach, lan Marshall. Mr Marshall said later he thought a goal should have been awarded instead of a penalty because Carville had put the ball into the net. There was “no way” the quicksilver Carville had been off-side when the ball was kicked,

he said. “I don’t want to detract in any way from the way Nelson played, because they did very well against us.” Mr Marshall said. “But the performance of the officials left a lot to be desired. I think we deserved a victory. I can’t help feeling it was taken away from us. Two players, one from each side, were cautioned for dissent, while overvigorous fouls often went unadmonished. The tall Christchurch centreback, Gary Lund, received a yellow card after an attacking corner for making the most succinct comment of the day, “that’s ridiculous ref.” Christchurch was without the striker, John Hanson, whose wife was due to have a baby yesterday, and the key midfielder, Steve Sumner, who has been overseas on business, and their absence forced a reshuffle with Danny Halligan moving up front, alongside Carville. Both defences were dominant, with the All White skipper, Ceri Evans, leading Christchurch’s rearguard. Scorers: Nelson: Darren Walsh. Christchurch: own goal by Shaun Rodgers (Nelson).