The Pitmen extended their unbeaten run to three games this afternoon as they drew a blank against Team Bath at Twerton Park, despite having the lion's share of possession and chances throughout the ninety minutes

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Last weekend's 3-1 win over Cirencester Town at Keys Park had moved Chris Brindley's side up to seventh place in the Southern Premier League table, with the Pitmen's player/manager making one change to his side for today's trip to Somerset as he brought Leon McSweeney back into the in place of Richard Teesdale; this saw the Pitmen's gaffer moving back to centre-back to replace Teesdale after a successful spell as an auxiliary target man up front

 

Team Bath - now playing at the home of their local rivals after outgrowing their own University sports ground due to ground grading requirements - sat in fourteenth place in the table ahead of play after drawing 1-1 at Hemel Hempstead Town last weekend. Manager Ged Roddy made four changes to his side from the one that had started at Vauxhall Road as Matthew Reeves, Nick Hudson, Danny Maye and Paul Tisdale all came in ahead of Alex Ball, Luke Prince, Garry Haylock and Tom Gould

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On an overcast afternoon and in front of a meagre crowd, the away side started with purpose as they settled into their direct pressing game early on. In the fourth minute, Lee Williams whipped in a free-kick from the left that had been won by Anthony Maguire and found the head of Brindley, who headed into the open terrace behind the goal housing the travelling supporters

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Good play from Paul McMahon in the eighth minute saw the former Rocester man turn on a sixpence to take a Marlon Walters pass past Ali Otto, looking to play McSweeney in with a fine pass that was put out by the alert presence of Paul Tisdale

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Referee Mr Rodda irked the home supporters and officials somewhat in the twelfth minute as he denied Tomas Jaukovic a clear shot at goal with a tight offside call against the striker after a long, rangy through ball from Reeves had caught the Hednesford defence square

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Team Bath stopper Darren Chitty made the first of a series of fine saves three minutes later as he pushed a left-footed shot from McSweeney from eighteen yards out around the post after the Irishman had taken a touch just outside the Team Bath penalty area

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On seventeen minutes, Maguire's run down the left saw him drift past Peter Tisdale and cross for McMahon, whose downwards header was saved by Chitty inside his six-yard box as McSweeney looked to claim any scraps

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Steve Brannan escaped with just a ticking off from Mr Rodda on twenty minutes as he mistimed a challenge on Dean Smith and sent the midfielder sprawling

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Midway through the first period, a long ball forwards from Ross Adams caught Otto out as it drifted over the head of the centre-back and fell into the path of McMahon, who could not take the ball fully under his control and could only scuff his shot wide of goal from fifteen yards out

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The Pitmen felt that they should have been awarded a penalty kick on twenty-four minutes as McMahon tumbled in the box under a challenge from Carl Heiniger, but Mr Rodda was unimpressed with protests of the men in white and allowed play to continue

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Walters did well to win the ball just inside the Team Bath half of the pitch two minutes later, stretching out one of his long legs to intercept a forward pass from Reeves and send Maguire away down the left once more; the winger shuffled the ball onto his right foot and tried his luck with a curling shot from the edge of the penalty area that was easily saved by Chitty

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Chitty was involved once more just after the half-hour mark as he made a good stop to deny Lee Barrow from a free-kick after the experienced centre-back had drilled a low shot in at goal from twenty-five yards out

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Another good delivery from Williams on thirty-three minutes saw the former Aston Villa man clip a corner kick into the near post and find the head of Barrow, whose flick header was hacked away from danger by Paul Tisdale as McMahon lurked inside the six-yard box

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Team Bath's best spell of the game saw them finish the half the stronger of the two sides as they forced Ryan Young into his first action of the game; on thirty-six minutes, Jaukovic jinked his way past two challenges on the edge of the Hednesford penalty area and drove in a right-footed shot that Young fielded low down to his left-hand side to save

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Young made a more impressive stop two minutes later as he was forced into a save at full stretch to tip a rising shot from Hudson away for a Team Bath corner after patient build-up play from the hosts had seen Heiniger and Reeves set up the midfield man

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On forty-one minutes, Brindley did well to halt Jaukovic's progress by making a timely tackle to push the ball away from goal, only to play it into the path of Smith; his follow-up shot from twenty yards out was watched narrowly over the crossbar by Young

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In first half added time, Grant Beckett's slip allowed Hudson to take the ball into the Hednesford penalty area down the right, but his selfish angled drive failed to test Young when a cross to Jaukovic at the far post would probably have been a better option

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The Pitmen had been a constant threat on the break throughout most of the first half but had nothing to show for their efforts third far, with Team Bath content to soak up the pressure on them from their visitors and had looked a threat late on in the half

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Two minutes into the second half, Beckett took a free-kick quickly and played the ever-willing Maguire into space down the flank. The winger stole a yard on Peter Tisdale and whipped in a cross to the far post the McSweeney could only steer into the open terrace behind Chitty's goal, under pressure from Otto

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The hosts responded with successive corner kicks from the right-hand side that forced Young into corrective action at his near post both times, punching the ball away from Heninger on the second occasion to deny the Northern Irishman a chance at goal

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On fifty-four minutes, Walters was fouled by Reeve to the left-hand side of the Team Bath penalty area, allowing Williams to spot the ball and lift his resultant free-kick into the penalty area, where Brindley rose highest to head towards goal, only for his looping effort to be claimed by Chitty

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Chitty made a fine save to deny McSweeney on fifty-eight minutes as a neat triangle of passing in midfield involving Walters, McMahon and Brannan  sent the striker away behind the home defence; his low driven shot from fifteen yards out was beaten away by the former Melksham Town stopper

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Three minutes later, Adams made an overlapping run down the right and was played into acres of space by Brannan, crossing low into the near post where McMahon's attempted shot at goal was blocked by Maye

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Barrow was slightly off-target with another well-struck free-kick on sixty-three minutes as his well-struck effort from twenty-five yards flew a matter of inches over the crossbar after he lifted the ball over the Team Bath wall

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The Hednesford bench were brought to their feet midway through the half as Maye's tackle on Brannan prompted an angry response from assistant manager Steve Anthrobus and the substitutes. The full-back somehow avoided a yellow card as Mr Rodda elected to keep his cards in his pocket, giving him a severe dressing down instead

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More heroics from Chitty denied Williams a great chance to open the scoring on seventy minutes as the midfield man got on the end of a neat move down the left and struck a firmly-hit half-volley at goal from twenty yards out, forcing the Team Bath stopper into a fine save to push the ball away down to his right

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Sixty seconds later, the Pitmen made their first substitution of the afternoon as they looked to add to their firepower with the introduction of top scorer Andy Bell for the hardworking McMahon

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Team Bath had struggled to make any inroads in the stubborn and in-form Hednesford defence throughout the second half, with a clever turn and shot from Jaukovic on seventy-two minutes easily fielded by Young, standing on his six-yard line

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Walters should have done better from twelve yards out with fifteen minutes remaining as he sidefooted a good chance wide of goal after Maguire had squared the ball into his path from the left flank

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On seventy-eight minutes, another pinpoint Williams corner kick was flicked on at the near post by Barrow and dropped in the six-yard box, where Brindley attempted to force the ball home from close range before being penalised by Mr Rodda for a foul in the build-up

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The Pitmen's second change of the game came with ten minutes remaining as the tiring Brannan - walking a tightrope with the referee after several petty fouls - was taken off in favour of fellow youngster Mark Branch

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Branch was straight into the action, exchanging passes with Beckett down the left before picking the run of Bell out with a lofted pass into the Team Bath penalty area. The substitute took a touch with took him away from goal and dragged his angled shot wide of Chitty's right-hand post

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Three minutes later, McSweeney and Bell showed their great understanding once more with a neat one-two to play the ball around Otto just inside the penalty area, with McSweeney's driven shot narrowly skipping wide of the post from sixteen yards out

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Brindley headed over for the dominant Pitmen on eighty-six minutes, put off slightly by the presence of Chitty as he rose to meet an inswinging cross from Williams

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In the final minute of the game, the visitors were denied what appeared to be a stonewall penalty kick as a superb curling pass into the path of Bell by Maguire sent the striker away on goal. The striker clipped the ball over the head of the onrushing Chitty and looked to turn the loose ball into the empty net, only for a clumsy challenge from the backtracking Otto to bring the substitute down eight yards from goal. To the astonishment of the Hednesdford players, officials and supporters, Mr Rodda failed to spot the infringement and only awarded Team Bath a goal kick. The Pitmen were incensed, with Brindley, McSweeney and Walters all surrounding the referee as they contested the decision to no avail

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This appeared to knock the Pitmen's confidence late on, as Team Bath held on for the point despite being second best for much of the game against a Hednesford side that had seen all of the chances come and go over the ninety minutes. A point maintains their seventh place in the Southern Premier League table, three points off the final play-off place with ten games to go. Brindley's men return to Keys Park on Monday night when they face local rivals Solihull Borough, who currently occupy one of the relegation spots in what will be the first of two quickfire games against the struggling Boro this month

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Team Bath: Chitty, Peter Tisdale, Maye, Heiniger, Paul Tisdale, Otto (Jones 89), Reeves, Hudson, Canham, Jaukovic, Smith (Lewis 70)      Subs Unused: Hines, Long

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Hednesford Town: Young, Adams, Beckett, Barrow, Brindley, Williams ©, Maguire, Walters, McMahon (Bell 71), McSweeney, Brannan (Branch 80)       Subs Unused: T. Marshall, Evans