|
Robins Defend Doggedly To Dump Wanderers
It was a tightly contested first half and the tension was palpable as Wycombe tried to upset their hosts with a high-tempo game, but Cheltenham refused to give ground. Chances were few and far between in the first 45 minutes with Wycombe having the best of the possession but unable to get men on the end of their plentiful crosses.
Ashley Vincent saw a shot turned around the post by Wycombe goalkeeper Steve Williams - the only on-target shot of the half - but the visiting front two of Mooney and Jermaine Easter always looked capable of conjuring something up. Easter grazed a diving header wide from a cross by the dangerous Kevin Betsy but Cheltenham finally managed to slow things down leading up to half-time and created a couple more chances of their own.
Midfielder Grant McCann sent a free-kick just over the bar from 30 yards and striker Kayode Odejayi had the ball in the net but the flag was already up for offside. Town were looking impenetrable all night though and their centre-half pairing of Gavin Caines and Shabe Duff were nothing short of outstanding during the 90 minutes.
Wycombe tore into Cheltenham at the start of the second half and of these two former non-league sides, it seemed that the Buckinghamshire club might make their extra six years of League experience tell. Mooney went close with two chances from inside the penalty area and Cheltenham's Gavin Caines was required to make a superb last-ditch tackle on Matt Bloomfield.
At the other end, Cheltenham struggled for attacking options on the break but Steve Guinan spooned high from close range and Brian Wilson drew a fine save from goalkeeper Williams at full stretch. In the dying seconds of injury-time, Wycombe's Easter turned sharply in the box but flashed a shot inches wide with the game's last chance.
Cheltenham line-up :
Shane Higgs, Brian Wilson, Jeremy Gill, Shane Duff, Gavin Caines, Craig Armstrong, John Finnigan, Grant McCann, Kayode Odejayi (Damian Spencer 67), Ashley Vincent (David Bird 80), Steve Guinan.
Unused substitutes :
Scott Brown, Mickey Bell and Steven Gillespie.
Wycombe line-up :
Steve Williams, Clint Easton (Michael Williamson 88), Danny Senda, Roger Johnson, Will Antwi, Russell Martin, Rob Lee, Matt Bloomfield (Stefan Oakes 79), Jermaine Easter, Tommy Mooney (Charlie Griffin 71), Kevin Betsy.
Unused substitutes :
Frank Talia and Joe Burnell.
Referee - Nigel Miller (Durham).
Attendance - 6,813.
Shots on target - Cheltenham 4 Wycombe 4.
Shots off target - Cheltenham 4 Wycombe 8.
Hit woodwork - Cheltenham 0 Wycombe 0.
Offsides - Cheltenham 5 Wycombe 1.
Corners - Cheltenham 2 Wycombe 10.
Free-kicks conceded - Cheltenham 9 Wycombe 6.
Goals - none.
Yellow cards - none.
Post-match quotes :
Delighted Robins boss John Ward admitted it had been too close for comfort :
"This game could have gone either way but it just happened to be the night for Cheltenham Town. We had to defend for large parts of the game because Wycombe made us do that. We wanted to try and take the game on and attack them but Wycombe are an excellent team.
"We got away with one or two things when it flashed across our box and we tried to attack them on the break. In the two games my back four and goalkeeper have been terrific but I feel for Wycombe because they are a good team."
Wanderers' stand-in manager Steve Brown insisted he was proud of his players, despite the 2-1 aggregate defeat :
"I'm disappointed for the boys and I've never seen a 0-0 draw as one-sided as that one. It was a very good performance from us and a great atmosphere here at Whaddon Road. I thought the way we played and passed the ball deserved a goal.
"I couldn't have asked the players to give any more. They were all excellent and gave everything. That was a return to the way we were playing in the first half of the season and at least we can take that away from it."