Another weekend of football has passed for Gloucestershire’s biggest football clubs as Forest Green Rovers and Gloucester City faced tough respective away tests at Accrington Stanley and Buxton whilst Cheltenham Town welcomed league rivals Fleetwood Town.
Let’s take a look at how the three sides got on as the 2022/23 football season heads toward the final quarter.
Cheltenham Town 1-0 Fleetwood Town
Wade Elliott’s Cheltenham came into this one desperate for three points having lost the last three league games conceding 10 goals with no reply.
But in their way was a Fleetwood side who were looking to win a fifth game in six after a recent resurgence under manager Scott Brown.
Both sides came close to opening the scoring in the first half but neither Ryan Broom or Carlos Mendes Gomes could find the target in front of goal.
The pivotal moment in the game came on the 56 minute mark when star man Alfie May brought that much needed spark as he fired a stunning volley past the helpless Jay Lynch into the far corner.
Fleetwood will have come away from the game feeling they should have taken something back on their travels as both Jayden Stockley and Jack Marriott spurned late chances to level the scores.
But the Robins would hold out to secure a first home league win since November to move four points from safety and take a giant step toward League One survival.
Accrington Stanley 2-1 Forest Green Rovers
Another team desperate for a win are Forest Green Rovers, who headed to Lancashire in search of a first victory in all competitions since their derby win over the Robins back in early December.
And they looked well on their way to achieving that feat when they were rewarded for their early pressure as Myles Peart-Harris poked home the opener on 22 minutes.
But the game turned on its head moments before the break when Olly Casey was shown a straight red card for a high tackle on Nathan Butler-Oyedeji.
From the resulting free-kick Stanley drew level as another Brentford loanee was on the scoresheet, Aaron Pressley this time finding the net as his downward header was poorly handled by Rovers keeper Ross Doohan.
The hosts would complete the turnaround just after the hour mark when Rosaire Longelo cut in from the right hand side before firing past Doohan who was once again caught out in the Rovers goal.
The defeat extends Rovers’ winless run to 15 games as head coach Duncan Ferguson continues his search for a first win since he took charge at The Bolt New Lawn.
Buxton 2-1 Gloucester City
A win against mid-table Buxton would have been just what the doctor ordered for Gloucester after another week of controversy off the pitch at the National League North Club.
And three points at the Tarmac Silverlands Stadium would’ve really helped Stephen King’s side and their play-off hopes after a run of four games without defeat.
But they got off to the worst possible start when quickfire goals from Bradley Jackson and Jak McCourt saw the hosts race into a two goal lead after just 15 minutes.
It took Gloucester until the 76th minute to get back into the tie as Tope Obadeyi fired the visitors back into contention.
But they couldn’t find a second and the clash would end in defeat as the Tigers now sit two points outside the play-offs albeit with other sides around them having games in hand.
