Grey Horse began the new season away to Darlington Croft, after promotion to Division two, and got off to a great start with a 1 – 2 win. Manager, Martin Joyce, had a pleasant problem to solve, with the amount of players available for the game, some having to miss out on the 16 selected. Starting with a 4-5-1 formation, Horse began well, passing the ball around and creating chances from play through midfield and both flanks. Jeff Dixon and Russell Mercer were playing well, with attacking play down the wings and, eventually, new signing John Myers put the away team 1-0 up with twenty minutes played. Sub, Harry Thomson, went close with a header that just flew the wrong side of the upright, to leave the half time score 0 – 1. After looking fairly comfortable in the first half, tiredness began to take effect in the sunny conditions and Croft began to look dangerous, breaking from midfield in the second half. They were rewarded with a goal midway through the half; a shot from the edge of the box beating goalkeeper, Stuart Timmiss’ attempt to save. Shaun Moore went on a mazy run from the full back position, and should have gone for goal instead of wasting the chance with a misplaced pass. Horse needed to convert their forward play and, with 10 minutes left, a pin point pass from Myers reached Darren Foster, who shot the ball into the net and sealed the win. Horse played well in patches, but need to provide better quality of final pass if they are to consolidate their good ball possession. The title of Man-of-the-match was given to defender Mel Douglas, who stood strong when Croft were attacking in numbers.
