Bash boss Gray calls for cool heads (From Bournemouth Echo)

Bash boss Gray calls for cool heads

6:47pm Wednesday 20th March 2013 in Non league football By Andy Mitchell

BASHLEY boss Frank Gray called for cool heads after watching his Southern Premier strugglers suffer a 3-1 defeat to Chesham United on Tuesday.

Bash let slip a seventh-minute lead given to them by Ian Oliver as the play-off chasing Generals netted through Simon Thomas, Inih Effiong and Chris Watters to condemn the hosts to an eighth league defeat at Bashley Road this season.

But with results elsewhere going the New Foresters’ way – with relegation rivals Redditch and Bedworth both losing – Gray insisted his charges were still well placed to survive.

Gray told the Daily Echo: “We are mindful of where we are in the league but there is no need to start panicking. Anyone else down there would want to swap positions with us.

“Nobody has gained anything on us and we have just got to try to match the results of the teams around us to make sure we stay out of trouble.”

Gray added: “We made a good start and could have been three up in the first 15 minutes. We were disappointed to be 2-1 down at half-time because we gave away a couple of bad goals, although the second was clearly offside in my opinion.

“Chesham were strong in the second half and took their third really well and, to be honest, were one of the strongest sides we had faced for a long time. We did okay and there were still plenty of positives to take despite the result.”

Meanwhile, Gray has added to his squad ahead of the relegation run-in, snapping up frontrunner Alex Moth following his release from AFC Bournemouth. The Cherries youngster was released last week after loan spells with New Milton and Wimborne Town.

Bash: Moore, Strickland, Oliver, Finlay, Middleton, Richardson, Casey, Gradwell (Foster, 75), Stokoe (Hill, 75), Gamble, Jenkinson (Cooper, 78). Unused subs: Gazzard, Kearn (g/k).