Critics who have been calling for Chris Brass to take a seat in the dugout have had their prayers answered - by a man dressed in black.

Referee David Pugh condemned the under-fire player-boss to a four match ban with a harsh sending off 78 minutes into Saturday's disappointing defeat.

Brass stuck a foot out and clipped midfielder Mark Greaves as he went to go round him. Greaves collapsed into a rolling triple somersault clutching his shin. The Pilgrim crowd bayed for the red card and Pugh duly obliged.

They were delighted. Brass was not. And as he trudged down the tunnel for his early bath, Graeme Jones capitalised on the disjointed City defence to head in the winner and kill the game off.

Even Boston's caretaker manager Jim Rodwell - who was only yards from the incident when it happened - agreed it was probably unnecessary.

He said afterwards: "I thought it was possibly a bit harsh. It was a foul and a booking but whether it was a straight red I'm not so sure.

"But having said that, we will take everything we can in the position we are in."

In Saturday's Evening Press, Brass hit back at fans who had been calling for him to drop himself saying the defence would fall apart without his communication.

"Sometimes you have to come out but the one thing we did lack when I came out of the team because of suspension was voices," he said. "If somebody came in that screams and bawls and organises things at the back and I could trust him then I think it would make my decision easier."

And it has to be said that if Saturday's post-Brass reckoning is anything to go by, he may be right.

The organisation collapsed almost instantly as players were running around everywhere like the proverbial headless chicken.

It was too easy for Boston and Jones duly popped up with a second to put the game well beyond reach.

How much of the disarray was caused by simply being reduced to ten men will become clearer when Brass starts his ban, which, because of his sending-off at Carlisle on the first day of the season, will be for four matches rather than the usual three.

Minutes before the controversial red card (Greaves went on to make a full recovery soon after) City had started to stage a comeback after being rocked by Peter Duffield's 55th-minute opener.

The former Minsterman, who left under a cloud at the end of the Terry Dolan regime, continued his quest to endear himself with the 229 travelling City faithful by twice breaching Mark Ovendale's goal.

The first, five minutes into the second half, saw him pounce on a Brass mis-kick and slot the ball under Mark Ovendale only to be denied by the linesman's flag.

But he made sure with the second as he slid in to the box to meet a Paul Ellender cross pulled back from the by-line.

Initially shell-shocked by the goal, which had, to some extent come against the run of play after a dominant first half, City fought back. Justin Walker came on for Lev Yalcin and slotted into the supporting role behind Lee Nogan and Lee Bullock and looked to be adding some spark.

Richard Cooper even managed to pull the trigger on a goal-bound shot, although the end product - which was the only effort of the second 45 - would have frightened fans stood behind the edge of the 18-yard box high in the stand more than goalkeeper Paul Bastock.

But ultimately, City never recovered from not taking the lead in the first half. Yalcin directed his 15th minute shot straight at Bastock, before going inches wide four minutes later with a low drive.

Steven Downes - in for the injured Edmondson - struggled to find the necessary quality in his crosses from the right, while several one-touch build-ups fell to pieces when they reached the crushingly low in confidence Bullock.

What light there was came from young guns Yalcin and Sean Davies, who justified Brass' decision to keep him in the team after Tuesday night's game against Lincoln with a goal-line clearance, a superb second half sliding tackle deep in the penalty area, and a confidence going forward.

Ovendale also did his bit with a great save in each half, tipping an Ellender header over seconds before Duffield's strike.

Brass may have been reluctant to step back of his own accord but one can only hope that the man in black has bestowed a blessing in disguise upon City.

And maybe next time they face such a deeply average side as Boston, they will be able to come out on top.

Saturday, February 21, 2004

at York Street

Boston United 2

(Duffield 55, Jones 81)

York City 0

City ratings:

Ovendale 6

Hope 6

Brass 6

Smith 6

Davies 7 (Merris 73, 6)

Dunning (c) 6

Cooper 7

Downes 5

Nogan 6

Bullock 5

Yalcin 7 (Walker 58, 6)

Subs not used: Wise, Ward, Porter.

Star Man: Sean Davis - both competent and confident in defence and attack.

Key: 10 Faultless, 9 Outstanding, 8 Excellent, 7 Eye-catching, 6 Good, 5 Average, 4 Below-par, 3 Dud, 2 Hopeless, 1 Retire

Boston United: Paul Bastock, Ben Chapman, Stuart Balmer, Paul Ellender (c), Lee Beevers, Tom Bennett, Mark Greaves, Lee Thompson, Adam Boyd, Peter Duffield, Graeme Jones (Stuart Douglas 86). Subs not used: Mark Angel, Steve Croudson, Ryan Clarke, Chris Hogg.

Yellow cards: 45 Greaves, 90 Thompson

Red card: 78 Brass (professional foul)

Referee: David Pugh (Merseyside). Rating: Sensible refereeing throughout but harshly saw red at Brass' 78th minute challenge on Greaves.

Attendance: 4,068

Weather watch: Grim and overcast with a bitterly cold wind to match. Not nice.

Game breaker: Brass' harsh sending off led to disarray at the back when York had been looking good for an equaliser.

Match rating: A game of two halves - a lively and entertaining first followed by a flat second - between two decidedly average teams.

Player watch - Chris Brass:

Shots on target: 0

Shots off target: 0

Passes to own player: 7

Passes to opposition: 2

Crosses to own player: 0

Crosses to opposition: 0

Pass success rate: 78 per cent

Dribbles ball retained: 0

Dribbles ball lost: 0

Fouls won: 3 Fouls conceded: 2

Offsides: 0 Headers: 9. Tackles: 3

Clearances, blocks and interceptions: 7

Yellow cards: 0. Red cards: 1

Final summary: For a man who has been criticised in the past for his below-par distribution, the player-boss will be happy with a 78 per cent pass completion strike rate. Playing in the middle of a back three, he soaked up the most headers and made five clearances as well as creating a good chance for Justin Walker after turning round an interception.

His fouls tally show a man who is not afraid to mix it (three fouls won) while not being dirty himself, despite his red card.

His first foul was against former charge Peter Duffield and the second earned him a straight red.The statistics paint a steady picture, although the biggest indicator came when his side virtually collapsed without him.

Updated: 08:51 Monday, February 23, 2004