Returning O Toole sparks Nomads comeback

A gritty performance saw the Nomads recover from a two goal deficit to gain a valuable and impressive 3-3 away draw against a much improved Aberystwyth side.

The talking point before the game was the return to the Nomads ranks of Gary O’Toole and because of an injury to Simon Everall during the warm-up, Gary found himself elevated from the bench to the starting eleven.  With Ryan Edwards and Danny Dobbins unavailable, the team lined up in a 3-5-2 formation with Danny Forde and Mark Smyth operating as wing backs.

The early stages of the game saw Aberystwyth in control and the Nomads struggling to pass the ball out of defence.  A defensive error gave the home side their first chance in the 10th minute and Terry McCormick was forced into an excellent save in the 15th minute as he pushed a low shot round the post for a corner.  The Nomads showed little in attack until Mike Hayes was put through by skipper Craig Jones in the 18th minute but  his on-target was foiled by a very good save by the Aber keeper.

Shortly afterwards, in the 20th minute, Aberystwyth took the lead with a goal from Craig Williams.  The goal actually arose from a miskicked long-range shot which looked to be heading towards the corner flag for a goal-kick.  However, it was collected by an Aber player before it went out of play and after he had run in towards the goalmouth his shot was blocked but fell to Williams who scored from the rebound. 

The Nomads looked to be having an off-day and continued to lose the ball through simple errors and Aber had another chance just a few minutes later when a 20 yard shot went just wide of the post.  A rare Nomads attack saw Mike Hayes make a strong run down the right wing before sending over a cross towards Gary O’Toole, but the cross was intercepted by an Aber defender.  Mike Robinson then headed over from a Tigger free kick but overall it remained Aber very much in control and it was not until the 37th minute that the Nomads had their first corner of the game.  An overhit second corner kick in the 40th minute saw Aber break out quickly and Terry McCormick was forced into another good save to keep the scoreline to 1-0 at half-time.

The second half started with the Nomads immediately in trouble in defence, resulting in an early corner to Aber and from this corner Chris Venables scored to make it 2-0 after 46 minutes. 

It looked like curtains for the Nomads but a rare attacking move in the 52nd  minute saw Paul Mooney cut in from the left before taking the ball to the by-line and crossing across the goalmouth where Gary O’Toole was on hand to score from close range.  Suddenly it was all Nomads and Aber were now struggling to contain the attacks launched by the Nomads.  Referee Dean John then became the centre of attention as he turned down a very clear penalty after an Aber defender had handled.  Another attack from the Nomads saw a Danny Forde effort parried by the keeper but a couple of minutes later it was 3-1 to Aber after Forde was unfortunate to turn an Aber corner into his own net.

It looked like a real uphill battle but the Nomads were soon back on the attack and looking to get back into the game.  Mike Hayes had a powerful shot parried by the keeper and despite their lead Aber looked nervy.  Then in the 75th minute Danny Forde scored as he ran in to latch on to the ball after the keeper could only parry another shot from Mike Hayes.  Forde had started the move with a pass through to Gary O’Toole who had then slipped another pass through to allow Mike Hayes to hit his shot which the keeper could only parry.

With Nomads looking for an equalizer, Aber were making only the occasional move forward but Terry McCormick was forced into making an excellent save as he turned a speculative long-range effort round the post as it looked to be heading into the top corner of the net.

The Nomads finally got their reward for a spirited second half recovery when they were awarded a penalty after Mike Hayes was brought down running through to goal.  The Aber defender appeared to be the last man and was fortunate to only receive a yellow card for his action.  Gary O’Toole stepped up to take the penalty and he slotted it in with ease. 

Both sides sensed that there might be another goal in the game and Aber hit the Nomads post before the Nomads had the ball in the Aber net only to see the linesman indicate offside.  The Nomads then had a scare right at the end when Aber were awarded a free kick on the edge of the penalty area and Wyn Thomas lined himself up for a shot on goal which thankfully went along the ground straight at Terry McCormick who saved at the second attempt.

In the end, an excellent result for the Nomads who recovered from a poor first half performance and showed tremendous character to fight back twice from a two goal deficit and take a point from a well organised and much improved Aberystwyth side.

After the game, Director of Football Mark McGregor commented saying "It's great to havy Gary [O'Toole] back in the team and I am very surprised the nobody took a chance on him as he's a proven natural goalscorer.

I know how to get the best out of him alongside Mike Hayes and Simon Everall, they will score goals.  He did the business today and that was only half-fit - next week it might be Hayes and Everall playing together, but they al respect each other and know that it's a team result that matters and they all celebrate together no matter who scores.  For Gary to get two goals today was fantastic and he will no doubt help Simon [Everall] and Mike [Hayes] get goals as well."

Match Photos