AFC Telford 1 Leamington 1 - Report

Knowing whether this result for the Bucks could be filed under ‘Missed Opportunities’ is likely to be something that doesn’t become clear for a while, possibly not until the end of the season; however, with some challenging fixtures just around the corner, missing any chance to collect three points has to be viewed as disappointing, even if the hosts did extend their unbeaten run to three matches, a season’s best.

Ultimately, the outcome of this game wasn’t decided over 90 minutes, but hinged on a span of around 90 seconds in the second half; Elliott Durrell converted from the penalty spot after 70 minutes, but the visitors struck back through former Buck Kaiman Anderson to restore parity almost straight from the restart.

On a weekend where clocks are turned back, the Bucks head into the darker nights and shorter days looking to put daylight between themselves and the foot of the table. They improved their league standing by one place, rising to 18th, as the four teams now below them all lost. As one of five teams on nine points, and with bottom team Gloucester on six points, the margins are tight.

Given that situation, taking three points from an experienced and durable Leamington team was always going to be a challenge. Paul Holleran’s Brakes are difficult to play against, and so it proved. Bucks’ manager Dennis Greene made three changes to his starting XI; without the suspended Theo Streete, loan signing Saul Shotton began in central defence alongside Ross White, whilst another loanee, Liam Ravenhill, made his first start, at right-back, Zak Lilly perhaps surprisingly dropping to the substitutes bench.

The other change was up front, where Kai Williams started alongside Jason Oswell, with Dom McHale making way. Williams was last week’s goalscoring hero of the 2-2 draw at Gloucester, and his first goal for the club seemed to have imbued him with confidence.

The Bucks had the better of the opening exchanges. Williams drifted a shot over the bar from distance and then couldn’t latch onto his own flick-on past a defender after linking up with Jason Oswell. Cameron Antwi, another of the Bucks ‘loan rangers’, fired a shot across goal and wide as Greene’s team looked to seize the initiative.

The Bucks’ desire to play through the final third earned them a few corners, if not any clear sights of goal. From a Brakes counter-attack Dan Turner won the visitors a corner, and when it was cleared to Joe Willis the midfielder’s volley lacked power and was safely pouched by Russ Griffiths in goal. Soon after Willis tried his luck again; a similar situation, a similar position, but this time his shot went wide of Griffith’s right post.

Play became scrappy, frequently punctuated by referee Liam Marshall’s whistle. A free-kick conceded by Jack Lane hauling Williams down earned a free-kick, but Oswell couldn’t fashion an effort on goal from Durrell’s resulting low cross.

Williams fired another shot over the bar from a tight angle to the left goal, and Griffiths was out smartly at the feet of Turner to smother the ball as the Leamington forward almost broke through. The pattern of the Bucks’ failing to find the desired in the final third continued up to half-time; Durrell and Williams had optimistic shots blocked or off-target, but at the interval, it remained goalless.

The Brakes opened the second half positively, and Turner would have been frustrated when he found room to turn in the box but saw his shot strike his teammate Kieran Cook, who took the force of the shot somewhere rather tender. Undeterred, another quick counter-attack saw White’s excellent sliding interception cut out a dangerous low cross from Joe Parker. Griffiths had to save with his legs from Cook’s shot, the forward unable to beat the Bucks no.1 from a narrow angle, before finally, the Bucks responded; Oswell couldn’t force a path to goal but Antwi picked up possession, skipped a challenge and fired an effort straight at Weaver, who held the effort in front of his face.

Each side seemed to be taking turns in a game of ‘almost, but not quite’. Greene freshened things up with a double substitution on the hour, and the Bucks almost immediately had their closest effort of the afternoon. Antwi, again impressing, won a corner when his run and low cross for Oswell was intercepted; from the resulting corner, Oswell rose high in the penalty area but although his header cut Weaver out altogether, the ball dropped onto the crossbar rather than dropping into the net.

Holleran also made a double substitution, as the sense grew that one goal may be enough to win the match. After 69 minutes, the Bucks were presented with a chance to make good on that; some good movement and passing around the edge of the area sprung the Brakes defence, but before Antwi could burst onto the ball he was scythed down by a despairing lunge from left-back Dan Meredith for a penalty kick.

Meredith was booked, and Durrell took responsibility for the spot-kick, stepping up to beat Weaver’s dive to his right with a precision finish, hard, low and true. The goal took the midfielder to three goals for the season, making him the Bucks top scorer.

Greene’s preference for the Bucks has been young legs over old heads, sensing his team needed more energy; however, a few more older heads may have prevented what came next. From the restart, the Brakes went swiftly onto the attack. Devon Kelly-Evans, a pre-season triallist with the Bucks, crossed well from the left and Brakes talisman Jack Edwards dived to head goalwards; Griffiths pushed Edwards’ effort away but was powerless as substitute Kaiman Anderson, a Bucks loan player in the 2015/16 season under Steve Kittrick, pounced to gleefully smash home the equaliser from a few yards out.

The Bucks had to start all over again, but building momentum after the stomach-lurching, roller-coaster few minutes they’d just experienced proved beyond Greene’s team. The Brakes looked the more likely side to win it, Kelly-Evans and Anderson pepping up their forward play, but it was Durrell who almost snatched the extra points for his side in the 90th minute, firing the ball just wide of the far post when afforded room on the right of the penalty area.

Alas, it wasn’t to be, and the Bucks had to be content with a point. The home crowd warmed in spells to the youthful enthusiasm of Greene’s team, and Shotton made an assured debut in defence, but the sense that the Bucks had spurned a golden opportunity by letting their guard drop was unavoidable.

Next weekend’s trip to Bradford (Park Avenue) pits them against fellow strugglers before a tough away trip to closest rival Kidderminster Harriers and the visit of league leaders AFC Fylde a week later. With a schedule like that, getting the boost of a victory would have warmed the Bucks and their fans as the chill of winter arrives.

Teams

Telford (4-4-2): Griffiths; Berkoe, White, Shotton, Ravenhill (Lilly 60), Antwi, Sparrow (Byrne 88), Walker, Oswell, Durrell, Williams (McHale 60).

Subs not used: Bood, Abbey.

Leamington: Weaver, Martin, Meredith, Clarke, Morrison, Lane, Parker (Kelly-Evans 63), Willis (Gittings 75), Turner, Edwards, Cook (Anderson 63).

Subs not used: Morley, English.