Dickman disappointed as South Shields fall to Leamington loss

Elliott Dickman was left disappointed after South Shields were punished for a below-par performance in Saturday’s 2-0 defeat at Leamington.

The hosts took the lead with 20 minutes on the clock as George Ward headed home after getting on the end of what Dickman felt was a throw-in decision that went against his own side. Tim Berridge doubled the lead five minutes before half-time with a neat finish that put the Brakes completely in control of the contest.

South Shields did create a number of opportunities to get back into the game after half-time - but were unable to find a way back into the contest as a frustrated Dickman was left to rue the state of the New Windmill Ground pitch and the performance of the match officials.

He told the club website: “It’s disappointing, the pitch isn’t a great pitch, it was a scrappy game, the ball was in the air a lot, doesn’t suit our style of play and fair play to them, they handled it better than we did, especially in the first-half. The first goal is our throw-in, it goes out of their player and he gives a throw-in to them, they scored from a long throw with a free header into the box and that’s something we have to be better with.

“The first bit, where it’s come from, it’s our thrown ultimately and he’s got to make sure he is making the right decision, that’s disappointing. I thought he made some really poor decisions throughout the game - but it’s not an easy job being a referee and I wasn’t convinced today.”

There was one major positive on an otherwise disappointing afternoon for the Mariners as Louis Burns became the latest academy product to make a senior appearance after he replaced Dylan Stephenson with just under five minutes remaining. He joined fellow academy graduates Ewan McGowan, Bryan Taylor, Kyle Seymour and Will Jenkins on the pitch - and Dickman is hopeful more Mariners youngsters can thrive in a senior environment over the coming weeks and months.

He explained: “We’ve got an amazing academy. Don’t get me wrong, there are areas where we could improve with it and the club know how we feel about things we can be better at. Ultimately, it’s fantastic and we have academy players within the group. Ewan McGowan comes on and I thought he was really terrific when he came on, he had a really good shot that their keeper tipped over the bar. But for the academy lads, I am delighted for them all. Louis comes on, that’s his debut for the first-team, it’s another one for the club to be really, really proud of. Hopefully there is more to come.”

The Mariners return to action when they return to the Midlands to take on Rushall Olympic next Saturday afternoon before they will focus their attention on a home clash with Brackley Town on the first Saturday of April.