16.4.2007
UniBond Northern Premier League
Hednesford Town
Dyer (38), Pedro (40)
Guiseley
Dunning (9), Denton (53)
(2) 2
(1) 2
Attendance
MoTM
Current Form
Next Match
376
Ross Adams
L W D L D D L D L D
Ashton United (H) 21.4.07
The Pitmen made it eight games without a win this evening as they are held to a draw by fellow play-off chasers Guiseley at Keys Park to leave the home side two points outside of the play-off places having played more games than all of the sides around them
Defender Gary Sucharewycz had seen his injury jinx strike once more, with the defender suffering a reoccurrence of the groin injury from earlier this term against Ilkeston Town on Saturday; Danny Bacon returning to the line-up in his place in the only change to Phil Starbuck's starting XI from the weekend
Guiseley's own place in the play-offs was still up in the air after a 1-1 draw at title challengers Burscough on Saturday, leaving the Lions sitting in the final play-off place but having played a game more than teams just below them in the table. There was one change to Terry Dolan's side from the one that started at the weekend as teenage midfielder Brice Tiani came in for the injured Danny Ellis
It was a good start from the visitors, looking to cement their place in the top five with three crucial points. Craig Hall had the first effort of the evening for the away side as he struck a firm shot at goal in the third minute but saw his shot sail over the crossbar
Guiseley did however get their noses in front in the ninth minute of the game as Mario Pedro gave away a free-kick on the edge of the Hednesford penalty area with a clumsy challenge on Tiani; Richard Dunning took a resultant free-kick that took a slight deflection off Pedro and sailed past Ryan Young in the Hednesford goal to hand Guiseley the lead
Ross Dyer looked to conjure up an immediate response for the hosts two minutes later as he reached a superb Ross Adams cross and headed towards goal, only to be denied by a flying save from veteran goalkeeper Steve Dickinson
On fourteen minutes, Tom Marshall was teed up well by Pedro, who slipped the ball into the path of the centre-back as he strode into the Guiseley penalty area but blasted his shot over the crossbar and into the Heath Hayes terrace
At the other end, Dunning almost repeated his trick from earlier on eighteen minutes from a free-kick in a similar position to his earlier goal but missed the post by a narrow margin this time around as he curled the ball around the Hednesford wall
Dickinson was called upon to make a save low down to his left-hand post midway through the first half as Iain Screaton got on the end of a move involving Chris White and Pedro but saw his shot pushed around the post by the former Southport stopper
Adams was having a fine game for the Pitmen at both ends of the pitch and tried his luck with a long-range drive that flew just over Dickinson's crossbar on twenty-seven minutes
More heroics from Dickinson on thirty-one minutes saw the goalkeeper turn Marshall's brilliantly struck free-kick from twenty-five yards out over the crossbar for a corner kick
Bacon exchanged passes with Pedro on thirty-six minutes before sending Dyer away down the right flank; the youngster took two touches before getting past Mark Bett and crossing for Bacon once more, only for the striker to fumble a shot well wide of goal
The Pitmen finally got themselves back on level terms with their next attack on thirty-nine minutes as a superb free-kick from Adams was swung into the far post, where Dyer was on hand to eventually turn the ball home at the far post after a goalmouth scramble
The Pitmen had their tails up and turned the game on its head two minutes later; Adams was involved again with a fine ball over the top and onto the head of Pedro, whose effort was superbly saved by Dickinson. The rebound fell kindly for the incoming Pedro once more, who fired into the roof of the net to give the Pitmen the lead
It had been an entertaining first-half from both sides, with the Pitmen edging the first forty-five minutes as the likes of Adams and Pedro had led the Lions a merry dance to put the hosts ahead
Guiseley made a strong start to the second period as Dolan sent his side out in a more attacking guise, with Young having to be at his best to deny Hall four minutes after the restart with a fine parry at his near post
From the resultant corner kick, Sam Denton made an overly-aggressive attempt to beat Young to Dunning's cross and bundled the stopper to the floor as a result, which earned him the first yellow card of the evening in the process
Another corner kick from the visitors a minute later saw a Dunning ball claimed by Young at his far post, but the stopper appeared to receive a sly punch from Marc Smith as he landed on the deck. However, the referee and his assistant on the main stand side missed the punch and Smith got away with his misdemeanour
Guiseley's top scorer Gavin Knight forced Young into a fine save on fifty-three minutes as he flew across goal to make a fingertip save and turn the ball behind for another corner. Dunning's fine flag-kick was met full on by the head of Denton, whose effort squeezed between the head of Screaton and the crossbar to level the match once more
The game was swinging back towards the visitors at this point, with Dunning forcing Young into another superb stop on fifty-seven minutes from another well-executed free-kick
Great play from Guiseley's Simon Sturdy saw him get away from three Hednesford players on sixty-one minutes and play Knight into space. The striker's reverse pass found strike partner Scott McNiven, whose first time shot curled wide of the left-hand post
Lee Soar did well to deny Smith a clear sight at goal four minutes later as he made a block tackle on the forward to deny him a shot as he got into the Hednesford penalty area
Bacon wasted a glorious opportunity to put the Pitmen back into the lead of this topsy-turvy encounter on sixty-eight minutes as Pedro's fine cross from the left was weakly headed wide of goal from just three or so yards out by the former Lincoln City man. How he missed such a simple chance, only he will know
Adams and Dyer linked up again on seventy-three minutes as another fine free-kick from the right-back found Dyer once more at the far post, only for the young striker to head his chance the wrong side of the post on this occasion
The Pitmen made their first change of the evening at this point as Bacon paid the price for his poor miss as he was hooked in favour of the goalless Justin Jenkins
It had been one of Phil Hadland's quietest games in a Hednesford shirt thus far as he had spent much of the evening playing in a more withdrawn role down the left to support Soar. His run and cross on seventy-six minutes was met by Darren Alexander, only for the striker to run his studs across the ball and divert the ball well wide from eight yards out
With ten minutes remaining, Denton's looping header from a Hall cross was turned over the crossbar by Young as he made absolutely sure to see the ball away from danger
There was another attacking change for the hosts before the game restarted as Jon Douglas was introduced in place of the disappointing Alexander to add more guile to the forward line
Dyer made a fine run deep into the Guiseley penalty area on eighty-three minutes after White had won the ball from substitute Mark Trueman and sent the striker on his way. He cut inside of Bett's sliding challenge but played it onto his weaker left foot and fired wide of goal
Jenkins headed a Screaton throw into the path of Dyer once more two minutes later, with Dyer laying the ball off the Soar just inside the Guiseley penalty area. However, Soar's shot was one very much one typically of a centre-back as he sliced his effort well wide of goal
In the final minute of the game, another fine Dunning corner was flicked on at the near post by Denton and into the path of substitute James Hanson, whose scuffed effort was hacked clear by man of the match Adams in a timely manner
A second score draw of the season between the two sides does very little for either side's top five ambitions and leaves both teams with the real possibility of missing out on the play-offs with only a couple of games left and other teams in a better position to claim one of the key positions in the table. The Pitmen end their home campaign on Saturday when they play host to struggling Ashton United needing other teams in the league to do them several favours
Hednesford Town: Young, Marshall, Screaton, Adams, White ©, Soar, Pedro, Hadland, Alexander (Douglas 80), Dyer, Bacon (Jenkins 73) Sub Unused: Whittaker
Guiseley: Dickinson, Hay, Bett, Denton ▆, Tiani (Trueman 68), Sturdy, Hall, Dunning, Smith, McNiven, Knight (Hanson 77) Sub Unused: Husband