Analysis: From joy to despair as AFC Telford pegged back late in huge clash at Kettering

The closeness of the title and play-off chase means that though both the Bucks and Kettering live to fight another day, the irony of this result is these teams slipped to third and fourth as Halesowen Town and Bedford Town moved into first and second.

The Bucks were within 90 seconds of victory in this contest, thanks to Matty Stenson’s 25th goal of the season; however, the hosts’ Kai Fifield capitalised on the away team’s only genuine defensive lapse of the game to snatch away two points from Kevin Wilkin’s team.

Wilkin had experimented with a diamond formation in the Bucks’ midfield in their last fixture and kept faith with a quartet of captain Luke Rowe, Max Brogan, Harry Hawkins and Remi Walker.

The only change Wilkin made to his starting XI was to select Ola Lawal, a recent signing, to partner Stenson.

Almost 1,700 spectators assembled at Latimer Park, which lies a few miles outside of Kettering in Burton Latimer. Kettering share the ground with Burton Park Wanderers of the Northamptonshire Combination. That dual usage and Kettering’s status only as tenants means that the playing surface, although much-improved, also leaves much to be desired.

Wilkin is accurate that to be successful, his team has to adapt to such conditions, which they eventually did; however, when both sides have to master the pitch before they can master one another, it’s almost guaranteed that the entertainment value will be minimal.

Kettering put the Bucks under some early pressure without much goal threat, although former Buck Sam McLintock almost opened the scoring after 10 minutes.

Luca Miller moved the ball infield to McLintock from the left and allowed a few yards of space, he got a shot off that took a slight deflection off Jordan Piggott, closing him down a split-second too late. McLintock’s shot dipped, and keeper Brandon Hall didn’t react. The shot struck the face of the crossbar to his left and rebounded out for a corner.

McLintock was also the first player booked for a knowing foul on Brogan as he looked to break into the Poppies’ half.

Just a few minutes later, McLintock must have feared his time was up when he lunged in on Lawal, fouling him. His reaction suggested he knew a yellow would mean big trouble, but McLintock was relieved when referee Jason Porter chose only to warn him.

Given the balance of the game, the Bucks would have been eyeing going in at half-time with their clean sheet intact. They achieved that and more.

With a minute left to play, Hawkins collected possession in midfield, and a little burst of speed carried him into the penalty area on the left, where right-back Ben Hart’s injudicious step across him sent Hawkins tumbling and a penalty kick resulted.

After a lengthy delay, with Jonny Edwards requesting treatment from the physio inside the penalty area, Stenson shrugged off any mind games to blast his spot-kick high into Dan Jezeph’s top-left corner as the keeper dived the opposite way.

The goal clearly shifted the balance, and the second half saw the Bucks take the fight towards Jezeph’s goal with much greater regularity. Hawkins and his midfield colleagues appeared more tigerish, and Kettering slowly became more frustrated with their inability to hurt the Bucks.

Chances started to emerge, and the Bucks spurned a glorious opportunity to kill Kettering off when Stenson’s control and surge into the Poppies’ half carried him past former Bucks team-mate Alex Gudger. He then laid the ball left to Lawal, but the Nigerian-Irish striker lacked the composure to test Jezeph and sliced the ball high and wide.

Kettering found a response, and substitute Fin Wilkinson ought to have made Hall work when he was found in space around the ‘D’ of the penalty area but fired a rising left-footer high and wide to his right.

It was a rare moment for the Poppies, and the home fans’ frustration, made worse by their faltering form, which had seen them fritter a lead away at the top of the table, began to affect the players.

Hurried decisions and poor execution allowed the Bucks to remain in charge, and as they pushed further forward, the gaps emerged.

Substitute Jimmy Armson strode from his half, shrugging off former Buck Connor Johnson, before drawing Jezeph and trying to place his shot inside the near post; the effort rebounded off the post for Gudger to hack the ball to safety.

Kettering had been reduced to a route one approach that the Bucks had dealt with, but when Rowe missed a header, and the ball was directed towards his own goal, Wilkin’s side were in trouble. Former Newcastle United striker Nile Ranger, on as a substitute, suddenly found some energy and the Bucks scrambled to cover, but his nudge to his right found substitute Kai Fifield, who showed great composure to fire the ball over Hall, high into the net, to grab an improbable point.

Telford: Hall, Fridye-Harper, Cranston, Piggott, Pendley, Hawkins, Brogan (Armson), Rowe (c), Stenson, Lawal (Hadley), Walker (Moore). Subs not used: Myles, Brown.

Kettering: Jezeph, Hart, Powell, Johnson, Gudger, Thanoj, Miller (Wilkinson), McLintock, York, Wilson (Fifield), Edwards (Ranger). Subs not used: White, Storer.

Referee: Jason Porter.

Attendance: 1,698.