Edinburgh earns extra credit for huge victory
Special praise must go to Justin Edinburgh after an extraordinary second-half show.
Picking out any Rushden & Diamonds player for the man-of-the-match award would be harsh on everyone else on the pitch.
Yet again this was a team effort with another clean sheet and more free-scoring form.
Perhaps there hasn't been enough credit so far this season for Edinburgh and his staff behind the scenes.
The whole squad have deservedly hit the headlines for their positive performances.
They have set such high standards and exceeded all our expectations to become real contenders for promotion through the Blue Square Premier play-offs.
But none of this would be possible without the wonderful work of Edinburgh, assistant Michael Stone and the backroom team who didn't have a big budget last summer.
It probably says a lot that the Diamonds manager was disappointed at half-time on Saturday when they led 2-0.
He demanded the right response and certainly got it in sensational style!
The opening 45 minutes didn't seem too bad as Diamonds created clear-cut chances and should have gone further in front.
The statistics show there were more attempts on target in the first period.
After the break Diamonds rediscovered a ruthless streak with clinical finishing to score six times.
The gulf in class was wide open between professionals who could be back in the Football League soon up against last year's Conference North play-off winners.
It must have felt like an even longer trip home for Gateshead after being totally humiliated and torn apart. But it could have been much worse for them.
Diamonds came close twice before skipper Jamie Stuart marked his return by heading home Mark Byrne's corner after only four minutes.
A series of opportunities were wasted but the lead was doubled when Lee Tomlin's clever flick fed Max Porter for his first goal at Nene Park.
Then came Edinburgh's inspirational words which made a massive impact.
Byrne and Tomlin combined brilliantly for Jefferson Louis to fire home.
Soon afterwards the on-loan Crawley Town striker set up the Nottingham Forest academy product to make it 4-0.
Tomlin was never going to miss out on his 150th league appearance and an angled drive brought Diamonds' fifth goal.
It was game over and not even midway through the second half with plenty of time to boost the tally.
Substitute Craig Farrell's right-wing cross was powered in by Louis who duly returned the favour with an assist for another superb strike into the far corner of the net.
The rout was wrapped up when Simon Downer raced forward, piled on the pressure and forced several errors which led to keeper Paul Farman's mis-kick and a simple tap-in.
It was a wonderful way to finish an amazing afternoon.
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Weather for Kettering
Sunday 27 May 2012
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