Relief for Rainworth MW

A point gained from Saturday’s goalless draw against Romulus was enough to secure Rainworth MW mathematical safety from relegation.
FOOTBALL Rainworth MW v RomulusFOOTBALL Rainworth MW v Romulus
FOOTBALL Rainworth MW v Romulus

Three points was the pre-match requirement, but Kidsgrove Athletic’s defeat meant that they cannot now overhaul Rainworth’s current points tally of 41 in the Evo-Stik League Division One South.

The result, and in particular the clean sheet at the back, went some way to erasing the memory of the 4-1 horror show at Kidsgrove a week earlier, but player-manager Scott Rickards was adamant afterwards that the victory was there for the taking.

The relegation concern was only a mathematical one, and Rickards said: “None of the lads went into the match believing we were in any danger, but it is a milestone passed.

“In terms of quality it wasn’t a great game for the spectators, but a clean sheet has given us something to build on.

“We and Romulus are similar clubs in a lot of ways, in terms of size, budget, league position and how they play - they are a strong and well organised side, but like us they couldn’t put the ball in the net either. It could have ended five or six-all if a reasonable proportion of the chances that cropped up had been taken.

“It was a typical end of season affair between two clubs with not much more than pride to play for, but for us it is important that we push on from it and ensure that we generate that extra bit of enthusiasm and tempo from our remaining games, so that we can go into our Notts Senior Cup final at the end of the month feeling good about ourselves.

“We’ve got some tough games to come, starting on Saturday against Belper Town, who will be anxious to secure the three points towards their play-off hopes, and we have to work to stop that happening.

“We are not the type of club who can just press the pedal and go forward, we have to work at being a good team, at playing good football, at closing opponents down, and we have to try to be as professional as we can be, which is what we have tried to do all season.

“Credit where it’s due, it’s great that we kept a clean sheet, which was important after the Kidsgrove shocker, but on the chances we created I felt we should have had more from the front end.”

Rainworth are throwing their gates open to U18s who will benefit from free admission to the Wrens’ final two home games of the season, in a bid to win young fans over for next season.

As well as for Saturday’s game against Belper, all U18s will also be admitted free to the Easter Monday derby against Carlton Town, this a rehearsal for the Senior Cup final just over a week later.

However, anyone aged under 13 who wishes to take advantage of the offer must be accompanied by a paying or ticket-holding adult.