With the previous Saturday’s loss to Matlock Town still fresh in the memory, manager Gary Hackett made two changes to his starting line-up. Brad Birch replaced Tom Tonks in central midfield, with Dan Scarr taking the captain’s armband, whilst new signing Darryl Westlake came in at right back, with Kristian Green moving to a central role and Joe Hull making way.
The opening half hour was largely event-free, with neither side able to seriously impose themselves. A push by Green meant that his second minute header from Chris Lait’s corner which was cleared off the line, would not have counted anyway, whilst a carbon-copy delivery from Lait ten minutes later brought a header from Scarr that brushed the top of the crossbar.
Scarr then fired well over from almost 30 yards and Kayelden Brown came close to touching in a deep Leon Broadhurst free kick just after the half hour, but that apart few chances came along at either end, despite the home side playing slightly the more composed football and occasionally stretching the Stourbridge defence.
Luke Benbow’s shot from 25 yards forced Jack Tolley to tip over as Stourbridge began to push forward in the latter stages of the half, but it was Sports who had the best chance of the half on 39 minutes as Matt Gould in the Glassboys goal was seriously tested for the first time in diverting Tom Burgin’s header wide from Clinton Morrison’s cross after a well-worked corner routine.
Just as a goalless half appeared to be drifting to its conclusion, the Glassboys forged ahead with their best move of the match to that point. Benbow’s flick set Matt Dodd clear down the right flank and his cross found Lait 15 yards from goal who controlled the ball and then lifted it just beyond the dive of Tolley into the far corner.
Mickleover started brightly after the break, with a snap-shot from Morrison clearing Gould’s crossbar inside the opening two minutes, but it wasn’t much longer before the former Republic of Ireland international made his mark, heading strongly past Gould having got ahead of Scarr in the six-yard box to meet Ben Turner’s cross from the left.
For a while, stalemate once more prevailed but the game seemed to be opening up again as the hour mark passed. First Danny Schofield volleyed over at the near post after more good work by Turner, and then Lait at the other end dragged a shot wide from 20 yards as the Glassboys looked to respond.
That flurry proved to be a false dawn, however, and it appeared that a replay was on the cards as both teams made a procession of substitutions in a bid to find the key to unlocking the other’s defence.
And it was one of those fresh arrivals, Brandon Hague, who made perhaps the greatest impact. His pace in chasing down a loose ball forced Jack Broadhead into an injudicious challenge right on the edge of the Mickleover penalty area, and from there Canavan found the top corner, with Tolley scrambling to his right in vain, to restore the Glassboys’ advantage.
The home side pressed in the closing moments, with the Stourbridge defence largely standing firm. Gould had to be sharp to hold a low shot from Jake Bennett at his near post, and then claimed a deep free kick from John McGrath at the far post, but those moments aside there was no real threat to Stour’s lead.