A BRILLIANT display from keeper Richard Anstiss and some inspired second half substitutions earned the Reds three vital points.

Strike pair Scott Rickards and Dave Walker came off the bench to bag the goals and it took the visitors until the 89th minute to find a way past Anstiss.

There was a debut for 19-year-old midfielder Graham Deakin following his release from League Two frontrunners Walsall and Rickards and defender Exodus Geoghaghan were dropped after missing a training session.

There were early opportunities at each end, Simon Hollis firing over for the Reds while a Nathan Wharton corner had to be cleared off the line by Deakin. And Hollis was involved in Redditch's best move, cutting in from the right and exchanging passes with Sam Alsop only for Hyde keeper Jean-Paul Nidjebayi to thwart him (above). Anstiss pulled off the first of many fine saves on the half-hour, palming away a fiercely-struck Dale Johnson drive.

And there was further drama a minute before the break when Johnson threaded a neat pass to former Worcester City forward Gareth Seddon only for Anstiss to again show excellent reflexes.

Hyde continued to dominate at the start of the second half and, three minutes after the restart, Seddon was denied by another good save.

And when Johnson finally beat the Redditch keeper the crossbar came to the rescue.

The game turned with the introduction of Geoghaghan and Rickards. The defender's pace and strength halted the marauding runs of the Hyde front two while Rickards began to stretch the visitors.

And it was Rickards who broke the deadlock on 72 minutes, collecting the ball from Ben Petty 25 yards out and unleashing a powerful drive that flew in.

Dave Walker joined the fray and he had added a second within two minutes. This time Rickards was the provider with an inch-perfect pass allowing the former Stafford Rangers forward to nudge the ball past Nidjebayi before calmly rolling it into the empty net.

The goals sparked Hyde back into action but Anstiss was equal to everything thrown at him.

Reds: ANSTISS 9, Petty 7, Whitcombe 6, A Walker 7, Rae 8, Deakin 7 (Geoghaghan 57, 8), Alsop 8, Clarke 6 (D Walker 78), R Adams 6 (Rickards 57, 8), Hollis 6, Palmer 7. Subs (not used): Cotterill, Francis. Hyde: Nidjebayi, German, Quigley, L ADAMS, Taylor, Wharton, Harrison, Pickford, Johnson, Seddon, Clee (Gedman 73). Subs (not used): Brackenbridge, Lynch, Howarth, Tolson.