Ecstatic Forest Green boss Robbie Savage hailed a stunning comeback as his play-off hopefuls roared back from two goals down to hit four and leave Eastleigh staring at relegation trouble.
Tranmere Rovers loanee Harvey Saunders scored a first-half brace for the Spitfires, but D’Mani Mellor gave Rovers hope just before the interval.
A quadruple change for Rovers at the break sparked a revival as Kyle McAllister’s brace and a stoppage-time fourth from Nick Haughton saw Savage’s side cap a remarkable comeback that included goalkeeper Harry Isted saving a Lloyd Humphries’ penalty.
A delighted Savage said: “The four substitutions at half-time changed the game for us. I’m proud of them- coming back from 2–0 down to win 4–2 shows real character. Eight players could have been taken off, and the four I substituted could have been another four, but the ones who came on made the difference. Honestly, we could have ended up scoring seven or eight.”
He added: “One thing that’s been said about this group is that they’re too young-can they fight? Can they show that desire in scrappy, horrible games away from home? I think they’ve just proved to everybody that this team can win anyway.
“It’s a tough place to come, especially when you’re 2–0 down. Two terrible goals from our perspective. Harry (Isted) made a great save at 0–0. But we started the game well -we had a couple of chances. Jayden (Clarke) had a one-on-one, the keeper saved it.
“And then D’Mani (Mellor) who I thought was tirelessly brilliant got his goal—brilliant for him.”
Savage also reflected on the challenge of managing under pressure: “What coaching courses and badges don’t give you is when you’re standing in front of your team, 2–1 down at halftime, against a team fighting for their lives, under pressure—making four subs. That’s what badges don’t teach you. What do you say? How do you change it? What solution do you find?
“I didn’t shout—no point shouting. I thought we played okay at times. But the fundamentals—put the ball in behind, run, win headers, win second balls.
In the second half, the four subs all contributed so well. We could’ve scored after 15 seconds. Nick was outstanding. The subs changed the game for us.
“I’ve said it in there—it’s a squad game. We’ve used a lot of players, rotated a lot, because we’ve had to find solutions. I thanked them, and we thanked each other—it was a big moment. I’m proud of them.
“Last week at Tamworth didn’t go our way. Today, 4–2 from 2–0 down -that’s character.”
Earlier, Sheffield United loanee Jili Buyabu fizzed wide in the opening exchanges for Rovers. Aaron Blair was denied an opener for the Spitfires as Harry Isted gloved his strike wide. Three minutes later Richard Hill’s side nosed ahead. Rovers’ Laurent Mendy’s weak header fell to Saunders who crisply volleyed it into the bottom of the net from inside the box.
Buyabu’s horror back-pass presented Eastleigh’s Saunders the chance to slot home beyond the exposed Isted, scoring his second in the 32nd minute.
On the cusp of the break Rovers were handed a lifeline. Mellor registered his first goal for Forest Green since arriving from Macclesfield – the striker smartly spun Temi Eweka inside the box and finished with aplomb after latching onto Buyabu’s ball into the box.
Savage’s four tweaks at the break almost paid off straight from the resumption – Substitutes Tom Knowles and Haughton combined for the latter to screw wide inside the box. Haughton’s dribble into the box from fellow substitute Jordan Moore-Taylor resulted in the midfielder being upended in the box, allowing McAllister to slot home from the penalty spot on 52 minutes. Mellor saw his strike hacked off the line.
Isted let the ball in behind him and Moore-Taylor was adjudged to have fouled Saunders. Lloyd Humphries fluffed his lines from the penalty spot – Isted gloving his tame effort. Moments later, McAllister grabbed his second and Rovers’ third on 66 minutes, firing home from the edge of the box. Savage’s side settled any late nerves as Haughton ran from inside his own half to pull the trigger from the edge of the box in the 95th minute.
A shell-shocked Richard Hill said: “We didn’t get into the game like we did in the first-half and I thought we played a lot of fear football in the second-half.”
Eastleigh: ( 4-4–2) : McNamara 7, Brindley 7 (Humphries 33, 6 ), Vokins 6, Eweka 6, Baldwin 6; Lundstram 7, Cousins 6, Auguiar 6 (Evans 78 ), Moore 7; Blair 7, Saunders 8 (Tabor 82).
Subs not used: Waruih, Efflong, Stone, Underhill
Forest Green: ( 3-4-2-1) Isted 8 ; Kanu 6 (Kengni 46, 7 ), Kircough 6 (Moore-Taylor 46, 6), Mendy 7; Pemberton 6 (Knowles 46, 7), Campbell 6 (Haughton 46, 8), Nwoko 6 Buyabu 6 (Ahmed 88); McAllister 9 , Clarke 8; Mellor 8
Subs not used: Pagel, Marquez,
Referee: Emily Heaslip
Star man: (Kyle McAllister – Forest Green, midfielder).
Attendance: 2,552.
