Gray curses Saints’ bad luck in front of goal

James Gray cursed St Albans City’s luck in front of goal following their 1-1 draw with Basingstoke Town at Clarence Park.

The first half was all one-way traffic but the Saints only managed to score once, through Sam Corcoran, when it could, and should, have been three or more, which, according to the Saints joint manager, would have ended the contest. The second half was more even but the hosts had more than enough opportunities to win the game.

Jason Bristow’s side were also indebted to their goalkeeper, Stuart Moore, who was in inspired form.

“How we haven’t won that game; I’m scratching my head,” said Gray after the match. “The amount of chances we created and how well we played, I can’t believe that we haven’t come off with three points.

“Two or three times the ball was on the goal-line, they had one ricochet off a defender’s knee into the side netting; we were missing a bit of luck. Our luck deserted us in front of goal.”

He added: “Their goalkeeper was unbelievable at their place, too. Sometimes a goalkeeper can win you points and theirs was man of the match.”

The result and point return may not have been what Gray wanted, but he had nothing but praise for his side, which put on a good show for the 608 fans at Clarence Park.

“At Havant and Waterlooville on Tuesday we had to keep it tight. At home, we have to be more adventurous,” he said. “I thought we were expansive, lively, every player put in a shift and some of the football was free-flowing – there were some immense performances out there. The squad has come up trumps but we didn’t get the three points we deserved.

“It was a good performance but I’m disappointed not to get the three points, which would have moved us up the table.”