Victory puts a smile back on Cameron's face

8:21pm Sunday 16th November 2008

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Park Avenue 2 Marine 0

A deserved victory delivered three points for Avenue as they reined in one of their rivals for promotion.

The Bradford side have been through an indifferent patch and were in danger of slipping into mid-table.

They stopped the slide with a draw at Worksop Town in midweek and signalled their resurgence with a straightforward win over Marine.

They are now just one place and one point behind the Liverpudlians, having played the same number of games.

A goal in each half saw Avenue triumph but the best news was that they dominated the midfield.

Before the game, Bradford boss Dave Cameron had spoken of his desire to turn the gloom into smiles and he emerged from the dressing room after the game with a beaming grin.

“That is much better, the effort and work-rate the lads put in made me a happy man and won the game for us,” said Cameron.

“The two central midfielders may not have had the ball as much as they wanted but their hard graft made a difference. It’s not all about neat little play and slide-rule passes, sometimes you just have to roll your sleeves up.

“That is the attitude that has won us this game.

“It isn’t just those two players, although Steve Bushall and Tom Claisse have made a massive difference. Mark Bett has had his best game for the club. Betsy and Rory Patterson never stopped running and pushing forward.”

With Luke Holden also having a very good game it meant all of the players involved in the midfield made worthy contributions.

It was Bett – who came on for striker Stuart Rudd just before the hour – who put the game to bed with Avenue’s second goal.

The Bradford fans never seemed settled but that was down to Marine’s commitment and desire.

It was a close contest and a flowing game that saw chances at both ends.

Avenue had a very good start and a really strong finish. They forced an 11th-minute corner and Holden’s inswinging delivery picked Chris Hall out and he headed in from close range.

Just after the half-hour Rudd teed up an indirect free-kick for Patterson to have a shot at goal but Marine keeper Sean Lake somehow turned the ball over the bar from the foot of his right-hand post.

Avenue had contained the visitors’ storming start to the second half and the later it got the more they looked like adding another goal.

It eventually came when an attack by the visitors in the 75th minute broke down.

Avenue skipper Mark Haran headed clear, Bett picked the ball up and sent a long ball to Hall. The big striker held it up before laying it off to Bett, who drilled in an unstoppable shot from inside the area.