Grays slump after Stuart sees red
For the second home game in succession Grays slumped to defeat after being forced to play much of the game with 10 men.
A moment of sheer madness and, quite frankly, brutality from Jamie Stuart left Grays a man light for 70 minutes.
The vice-captain's elbow left the jaw of York forward Chris Beardsley broken in two places.
To make matters worse, the offence took place in the penalty area so he conceded a penalty in the process.
Ross Flitney saved a woeful penalty by Stephen Henderson - whose own day was going to get a lot worse - but a York side without a win in five games was suddenly buoyed.
The visitors even had two of their own men sent off in the second half but the reality was Grays only had a numerical advantage for 16 minutes when they were already two goals down.
Robinson and Richard Brodie, who had come on to replace Beardsley, were the men dismissed for York for a professional foul on Mark Marshall and a stamp on Stuart Thurgood respectively.
In fact, Grays can consider themselves fortunate that referee David Phillips, didn't pull out his red card on at least one more occasion.
Flitney hauled down Brodie when clean through but escaped with a yellow as did Andy Sambrook for a foul on Paul Brayson as he raced clear from the half way line.
Flitney, in particular, was a very lucky man.
The frustrating thing for Grays manager, Justin Edinburgh, was that his side were the better side until Stuart's rush of blood.
Craig McAllister was twice denied by magnificent blocks by defender Dave McGurk and Gavin Grant fired wide after dancing past two tackles.
Edinburgh did not see the Stuart incident but admits it turned the course of the game.
He said: "We started brightly, took the game to York and I thought we would go on and win the game. But that incident changed the game."
Despite Flitney saving Robinson's spot kick, it was only a matter of time before they took advantage of their numerical superiority.
Martyn Woolford and Robinson went close from range before Onome Sodje was given the freedom of the box to nod home Woolford's corner two minutes before the break.
Grant nearly stemmed the tide just prior to the goal when he glided past three tackles before crashing a shot against the post from an acute angle but, for the most part, it was a rear guard action for the hosts.
Edinburgh resolved to change that for the second half, throwing on Danny Kedwell for defender Adam Gross and going 3-4-2.
Kedwell's introduction almost paid instant dividends when he forced a good save from Stephen Henderson after latching on to a ricochet in the box.
Referee Phillips had no option but to even the numbers up just past the hour mark when substitute Mark Marshall's pace caught Robinson by surprise and the York man scythed him down as he looked set for a clear run on goal.
Jon Ashton glanced a header wide from the ensuing free kick but within minutes of being numerically level, Grays were further behind on the scoreboard.
Stuart Elliott's hopeful volley towards goal, after Woolford's corner was half-cleared, was cruelly deflected by Murray past the stranded Flitney.
Three minutes later York went down to nine men when Brodie was adjudged to have stamped on Thurgood by referee Phillips.
The incident left a sour taste in the mouth of Billy McEwan who thought Flitney should have seen red a minute earlier for hauling down Brodie when clean through.
The York boss was further aggrieved when Sambrook felled sub Paul Brayson when he was also through on goal as Grays pushed forward looking to salvage something from the game.
But, as has so often been the case this season, they lacked the cutting edge in the final third to make the most of their advantage and York held firm for their first ever win over Grays.
That statistic will be well down on Edinburgh's list of concerns at the moment. Stuart's recklessness, his side's poor home form and lack of cutting edge will all be higher.
"I'm not happy with our home form especially after how well we did last season," he said. "We have to do something about it sooner rather than later."
Thanks to the Thurrock Gazette for the match report
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