Pickering Town 1
Spalding United 1
A super strike by Spalding United skipper Leon Mettam secured a precious point in their bid for survival in Evo-Stik NPL East Division on Saturday – but it could have been so much more.
In a tense encounter at relegation rivals Pickering Town, with points at a premium for both teams, Mettam broke the deadlock on 61 minutes – collecting the ball in space following a flowing right-side move and converting with a precision shot into a top angle of the home goal.
Heartbreakingly, the Tulips held on to their advantage until the sixth of ten minutes of added-time at the end of the contest when Ryan Blott levelled the scores with a low-driven free-kick from 25 yards.
The agony of missing out once again to a late goal was on the faces of players and the travelling support, but on reflection a draw was a fair result considering the Pikes had failed to convert a 10th minute penalty – Blott’s effort from 12-yards crashing against the woodwork, and shortly afterwards another goal area ‘gift’ having been squandered.
Boss Matt Easton wasn’t too downbeat with the result, admitting that Pickering deserved a share of the spoils.
He said: “If I was the Pickering manager, I’d be unhappy to get just a point – so getting a draw was the very least they deserved.
“We did OK and all of the lads worked very hard, so we can be happy with a point too.
“To be honest, every point we pick up is a good one and it edges us a little further away from the bottom three.
“Three points would have been great, but a draw isn’t all that bad.”
The Tulips worked hard throughout on a beautifully manicured but sloping pitch, but scoring opportunities were few and far between.
Their best effort came midway through the opening half with Jenk Acar ending a typically speedy and jinking run with a fine shot, only to see keeper Harry Foulkes deny him with a superb fingertip save in full flight.
In the opening minutes of the second period Michael Duggan performed heroics to turn Danny Earl’s lobbed shot over a top angle of the goal, and the Tulips began to command a greater share of the action.
Attacking movements, prompted by the midfield artistry of Kegan Everington, Taron Hare and Jack Brownell, were becoming more frequent and Mettam’s 61st minute strike was a direct result.
Play from then on switched from end-to-end with solid defensive work from both teams. The Tulips worked hard to stem the threat of The Pikes and Duggan kept the slender advantage intact as the minutes ticked away with another crucial save.
But deep into added-time the Pikes claimed a share of the points with Blott’s free kick from way out finding its way into the net without getting a touch from anyone.
Tulips: Duggan, Hare, Marshall, Brownell, Fixter, Zuerner, Moyses, Everington, Mettam (Hart 80), Acar (White 68), Hugo (Floyd 55). Not used: Smith.
MOTM: Michael Duggan.
Attendance: 142
