Another draw for Teversal

Pontefract Collieries arrived full of confidence, riding the crest of a wave after eight games without defeat.

Teversal were looking to start to build on their own run, having drawn their last three league games and needed to pick points up to avoid drifting into being entrenched in the bottom third of the table.

This game really did show that there was not a deal of difference between the two sides.

But the confidence the Ponte run has installed was clear to see from the off with the visitors dominating the early the exchanges.

The Teversal defence was put under early pressure and as early as the second minute survived a penalty claim when Radford went down under the close attention from Harcourt, but the Tevie defender didn’t make any contact as he ushered the striker away from danger and the referee made a good decision in awarding a goal kick.

Ponte did reap the rewards of their early efforts on nine minutes when Durham’s cross was headed clear by Pickering, only for Radford to pick up the loose ball to fire an effort from 20 yards that saw Agus superbly control before firing home from eight yards to give the visitors a deserved lead.

The home side showed some true character and started to have possession of their own and produced an effort when Dave Cockerill’s free kick found Harcourt, whose headed effort was scrambled off the line before Gregory fired an effort that was also blocked by what looked like an arm of a Pontefract defender.

But that wasn’t the view of referee as the ball was cleared to safety.

The game was now more even with both sides playing some entertaining football, with Ponte creating a number of opportunities from the flanks.

But there was none better than when Durham had an excellent run down the left flank before crossing to the far post, where Kamara managed to head on target which Brooks pushed up onto the bar before it was scrambled clear.

Teversal did have the best opportunity, though, when Gregory sent Tobin through on goal one-on-one with Hood in the Ponte goal.

The Tevie midfielder did everything right by lifting his effort over the Keeper who had spread himself, but the effort hit the inside of the post before somehow coming back out into play then being hacked to safety by a defender.

Salt was nearly rubbed in the Tevie wounds when, from a Catton corner, Kamara powerfully headed goalwards from seven yards, but Wilson did his job on the post to block the Ponte midfielder’s effort before clearing the danger as the Ponte players again appealed for a penalty with no response from the referee.

With the half coming to an end, Teversal had the last notable effort when Tobin played a low cross into Wood, who produced an early strike that caught the visitors’ keeper unaware. But he reacted to parry the effort over the bar to preserves his side’s slender lead into the break.

The start of the second period was a mirror image of the start of the first with Teversal having the better of the early exchanges.

This was also rewarded with arguably one of the goals of the season when the ball was worked down the left flank before Pearson picked out Cockerill to lay the ball into the path of Wood.

He took one touch before unleashing a powerful strike that would have gone through a mini tyre in the top left corner that saw the Ponte keeper rooted to the spot as the ball smashed into the back of the net to level the scores at 1-1 on 49 minutes.

Just like the first half the game then levelled out with both sides creating half-chances and efforts they should have been converted.

But they didn’t and, in the end, both sides will be happy that didn’t lose their unbeaten run.

But Teversal will be wanting to turn the draws into wins if they are wanting to climb up the table and reach the heights they have set themselves.

Teversal’s next game is on Saturday when the Tevie Boys travel to face Hemsworth Miners Welfare for a 3pm kick off in the Toolstation Northern Counties East League Division One.

TEVERSAL: Ryan Brooks, Brad Cox, Danny Wilson, Luke Pickering, William Harcourt (Triston Burrell 56), Greg Tobin (Sean Dickinson 67), Mark Robinson, Sean Gregory, Oli Wood, Dave Cockerill, Daniel Pearson.

PONTEFRACT COLLIERIES: Jon Hood, Dean Twibey, Adam Robinson, Michael Stayley, Jonny Forsyth, Josh Corbett, Andrew Catton, Chris Kamara (Brent Liester 64), Liam Radford (Steve Lyon 88), Tom Agus (Kingsley Wetherald 82), Luke Durham. Subs not used: Mark Simpson, Craig Robinson.

REFEREE – Colin Unwin (South Yorkshire). ATTENDANCE: 61.

TEVERSAL MAN OF MATCH: Luke Pickering.