SKY BET LEAGUE 2
Monday April 10th, 3.00pm
Sixfields
NORTHAMPTON TOWN 2
Louis Appere 32
Will Hondermarck 82
GILLINGHAM 1
Aiden O'Brien 63
Attendance: 6,904 (847 away supporters)
Cobblers: Lee Burge, Harvey Lintott (sub Jack Sowerby 46), David Norman, Jon Guthrie, Ryan Haynes, Marc Leonard, Will Hondermarck, Mitch Pinnock, Sam Hoskins, Louis Appere (sub Danny Hylton 77), Kieron Bowie (sub Tete Yengi 88)
Subs not used: Tom King, Paul Osew, D’Margio Wright-Phillips, Josh Tomlinson
Gillingham: Glenn Morris, Cheye Alexander (sub Alex MacDonald 62), Will Wright (sub Tristan Abrahams 88), Max Ehmer, Shaun Williams, Robbie McKenzie, Dom Jefferies (sub Lewis Page 46), Tom Nichols, Oli Hawkins, Timothee Dieng (sub Ethan Coleman 62), George Lapslie (sub Aiden O'Brien 62)
Subs not used: David Tutonda, Taite Holtam
Referee: Darren Drysdale
Booked:
Cobblers: David Norman (71)
Gillingham: Ethan Coleman (90)
Sent off:
Cobblers: none
Gillingham: none
David Norman made his Cobblers debut and Will Hondermarck replaced Jack Sowerby for the Easter Monday clash with Gillingham at Sixfields. Aaron McGowan and Akin Odimayo joined the long list of absentees having both picked up injuries in the game at Newport on Good Friday.
Mitch Pinnock shot wide from 25-yards and Louis Appere glanced a header wide from a cross in from Pinnock in the opening fifteen minutes.
Jon Guthrie headed over from a Pinnock corner and Will Wright made a good block to deny Sam Hoskins as the Cobblers pressed for the opening goal which duly came on 32 minutes, an alert Louis Appere firing home a loose ball inside the area.
Glenn Morris made a superb save to keep out a bullet header from Guthrie as the Cobblers went close to doubling their lead before half-time.
Jack Sowerby replaced Harvey Lintott for the second half.
Kieron Bowie was tantalisingly close to getting on the end of a ball into the box from Pinnock before Alex MacDonald, Ethan Coleman and Aiden O’Brien came on in a triple change for Gillingham.
No sooner had those changes been made Gillingham equalised through Aiden O’Brien, the substitute scoring from close range after a ball over the top held up in the strong wind.
O’Brien went close to a second when his shot went just wide as Danny Hylton came on for Appere.
With 82 minutes on the clock Will Hondermarck put the Cobblers back in front with a stunning strike from 25-yards that found the top corner.
It was a goal worthy of winning any game and it saw the Cobblers clinch a crucial three points in their promotion bid, the only late scare coming deep in stoppage time when Tom Nicols headed wide from a free kick.
COBBLERS MATCH STATS (first half in brackets, match total out of brackets)
SHOTS ON TARGET: (3) 4
SHOTS OFF TARGET: (4) 6
CORNERS: (4) 4
FOULS: (4) 10
CAUGHT OFFSIDE: (2) 2
GILLINGHAM MATCH STATS (first half in brackets, match total out of brackets)
SHOTS ON TARGET: (2) 3
SHOTS OFF TARGET: (1) 3
CORNERS: (0) 0
FOULS: (4) 10
CAUGHT OFFSIDE: (1) 5