Competition

Date

Saturday 5th February 2011

Bryant fires warning shot to play-off rivals

By Craig Lyus » Swindon Advertiser

Mitchell Bryant fired a warning shot to Supermarine’s Southern League play-off rivals and boss Mark Collier thinks there’s more to come from the striker. Bryant arrived from Hungerford last month but had been overshadowed by on-loan Jacob Erskine, a fellow striker who arrived at the same time. It was the former Manchester United trainee who hogged the spotlight on Saturday though as his second-half screamer helped Marine come from behind to beat Stourbridge 2-1 at the Webb’s Wood Stadium. Having spent much of his fledgling Marine career on the fringes it was the perfect way to show off his potential.

 

Boss Collier said: “Mitch is a confidence player like most strikers really and that goal will have done his confidence the world of good. “He just needs to get his head around non-league football now and get his fitness up together and he can really kick on from there. “He’s only had the Chippenham game before this one so once we get him sharp we should have a player on our hands.” Bryant rifled a long-range shot into the bottom corner just after the hour mark to sew up the points.

 

Stourbridge had taken the lead after fifty three minutes through Ryan Rowe as their physicality in wet and blustery conditions posed Marine plenty of problems. But the hosts did not waste much time restoring parity as Dave Bampton levelled six minutes later.

 

Bryant then took centre stage to seal three points at the start of a big week with fellow high-flyers Leamington and Chesham next up. “The one team I didn’t want to be playing on a day like that was Stourbridge. They’re a physical side that are very happy breaking the game up. “We showed great resolve in coming back from a goal down against a team like that. “What that result does is it takes the pressure off. “If we’d have taken a point off of Stourbridge, a point off of Leamington and a point off of Chesham we would have looked at it and said we’ve done okay and been competitive. “Now we’ve picked up all three points in one game so whatever we get out of the next two will be a bonus really.”