The Moxey Report:

Exeter City 2 Notts County 2. L2. Saturday 20 September 2008.
Ref: Roger East

Att: 4,341 with 352 away fans.

On a gloriously sunny afternoon at the Park, it was a tale of two old boys as City twice were pegged back to finish 2-2 with Notts County in front of a handsome 4,341 ultimately disappointed spectators.

Wholesale changes then, in both personnel and formation from the heavy defeat last week at Bradford with City returning to a more familiar 4-4-2 formationIt appeared that this signalled a shoot on sight policy from Tis too, with Dean Maxey blasting a long range sighter high over the bar within sixty seconds. A minute later Marcus Stewart played the most delicious defence splitter for Ben Watson to chase, but despite being clipped by the keeper-others might have gone to ground claiming a penalty - he managed to stand up long enough to pull the ball back for Ryan Harley who struck a good looking 15 yard drive high over the bar as Deano had before him. Ten minutes later it was Liam Sercombe's chance to try his luck, intercepting a loose pass in midfield before surging forward and hitting a 25 yard daisy cutter straight at the keeper. On the quarter hour City had their best chance to break the deadlock Harley played the ball into Stewart on the edge of the box who shielded it well with his back to goalHe laid it off to Deano who struck a venomous drive towards the base of the near post that a scrambling keeper tipped away for a comer. His blushes were spared further when stuck in no man's land as a towering Matt Taylor downward header was hacked off the line and away to safety. But eventually City's industry was rewarded and what a fine goal it was tooDeano floated over a cross from the left that beat everyone in the box, except for the charging Matt Gill who dived full length to gleefully bullet a header past the stranded keeper at the far post against his old club, and in front of the away fans too, to put City deservedly 1-0 up

However, for the remainder of the half the game degenerated into the sort of kick about found in a primary school playgroundNotts dominated possession as City time after time either gave the ball away needlessly, or played a colleague into trouble where he was then bundled off the ball. With the half about to close, Deano sent Watson scampering but in keeping with the way the half had gone he sent it a little too far forward and all Watson could do was cut it back into the keeper's grateful clutches.

The second half began in much the same scrappy and disjointed fashion as the first had ended, and five minutes in County had a superb chance to equalise. A forward found himself inexplicably in acres of space inside the area with the ball at his feet and instinctively smashed a first time shot to Paul Jonesright from point blank range. With a goal inevitable, Jones stuck out a strong right hand to parry the ball up and collect at the second attempt with possibly the best save I've ever seen at the Park in close to 30 years of watching CityHow he managed that I'll never know- maybe neither will he, and certainly the forward won't as he was already turning ready to celebrate in front of his fans behind the goal, But lessons weren't learnt about leaving gaps you could drive a bus through, and after harshly having a free kick awarded on the edge of the box for handball-Taylor turned his back to block a cross only for it to strike his arm-County made City pay dearly. Or rather, City threw them an equaliser that was entirely of their own doing as an innocuous looking cross was floated over where Nottscaptain Michael Johnson couldn't believe his luck in finding himself completely unmarked eight yards out and having the simplest of tasks of nodding past Jones low into the comer while the defence stood watching. Midway through the half quick fire substitutions of Adam Stansfield and Richard Logan replacing Watson and Sercombe respectively almost paid immediate dividends with Stewart raking a huge cross field ball to Logan, who in a single movement, sent Stansfield rushing through on goalOnly a last minute lunge to take the sting out the shot prevented Stanno opening his account for the season. A minute later Gill collected a ball fed in from the right and unleashed a ferocious 30 yarder inches past the keeper's left hand post as City stepped it up a gear. With a quarter of an hour to go former City striker Sean Canham came off the bench for Notts to warm applause from the Flybe Stand, but immediately found himself defending as City earned a corner at the other end. With time fast running out City continued to press for a winner, and thought they'd got it with less than four minutes remainingHarley dinked a cross to Logie on the corner of the box who in turn flicked it on towards the back post where Taylor came steaming in from nowhere to smash a distinctly un-centre half type toe poke back across goal at waist height to make it 2-1 to City. But Notts weren't finished and four minutes into five minutes stoppage time fashioned an equaliser out of nothing. Matthew Hamshaw was allowed to nush unmolested towards the City penalty area before unleashing a good looking shot towards the top corner. Jones stuck out a hand and parried the ball up-It's hard to see how he could do much else- only for Canham to get to the rebound first and power in a header from ten yards out to deny his former club all three points and score a late late goal for the second week running

Exeter: Jones, Tully, Seaborne, Taylor, Moxey, Harley, Edwards, Gill, Sercombe (Logan 72), Watson (Stansfield 69), Stewart.

Subs Not Used: Marriott, Obersteller, Cozic.

Booked: Gill, Logan.

Goals: Gill 22, Taylor 87.

Notts County: Hoult, Beardsley, Tann, Johnson, Clapham, Hamshaw, Smith (Strachan 74), Butcher, Weston, Forrester (Canham 77), Facey.

Subs Not Used: Pilkington, Mayo, Fairclough.

Goals: Johnson 58, Canham 90.

Att: 4,341

Ref: Roger East (Wiltshire).

Tuesday 23rd September 08
Exeter City Reserves 2
Swindon Town Reserves 0

Match report by Simon Hayward. 

The reserves produced an accomplished performance to beat Swindon Town 2-0 in a highly entertaining encounter at St James's Park From the first minute City were the brighter side and Logan went close with an opportunist lob inside the first five minutes but that drifted wide. Soon after Watson really should have opened his account for the evening, having been harded a gill-edged opportunity by Bertie Coxic. The open nature of the game showed no signs of abating when Steve Basham had a volley deflected wide shortly after. And the former Southampton man was only denied the opening goal of the game by a superb save from Brezovan, who was forced to tip Basham's 35-yard volley around the post at full stretch. When they finally got to grips with the game, Swindon tested the hosts' backline with pace and trickery which should have led to the visitors taking the lead on 25 minutes only for Nathan Thompson's lovely cross to be headed weakly at goal by Ben Joyce. Two minutes later it was Basham who was guilty of a weak finish as he wasted the best chance of the half, tamely poking the ball at an open goal and allowing Thompson to hoof clear while Brezovan was still on the floor following a collision with Logan. Finally the Grecians grabbed the goal they had been threatening a minute before the break, when Watson raced on to Jack Obersteller's wonderful ball down the left flank. The ex Grays man beat til for pace, cut inside the box and powerfully poked home from a tight angle through the over-exposed Brezovan's legsAnd in first half injury-time Basham should have doubled the lead but contrived to head Logan's cross over from eight yards Swindon took the initiative from the start of the second period but only had one real effort to show for it- Michael Pook's blockbuster from 30 yards had Andy Marriott stretching, but the ball drifted inches wide of the far post. And Exeter made their visitors pay for their lack of cutting edge by getting a second goal on 58 minutes. After some good build-up play, Ronnie Bull put over an excellent cross to the back post, which Logan volleyed home with aplomb. Town showed they were not completely out of the contest on 70 minutes, when the ever-dangerous Mark Marshall weaved his magic on the left before whipping over a great cruss which Joyce wastefully lushed straight at Mamott, who produced a smart stop. And with time ticking down Marshall again dribbled dangerously down the left and fired a venomous shot at goal, only for Marriott to frustrate the Robins best efforts with a typically assured save

Exeter City:
Marriott, Bull, Murray, Sercombe, Basham (Osman. 82), Martin, Shephard (Dawson, 35) Cozic, Watson (Frear, 82) Logan, Obersteller
Subs not used: Osman.

Attendance:148
Referee: RI Martin