Sleaford Town were back on the road on Saturday, as they travelled to South Yorkshire to face Swallownest in more UCL Division One action, resulting in a 1-1 draw. A late goal from Andy Whalen snatched a point for The Greens, after a goal from Pat Muirhead opened the scoring with five minutes of regulation time to go.

Manager Matt Evans made two changes to the side that lost to Staveley Miners Welfare the week prior, with Ben Coleman and Joe Nicholson dropping to the bench, being replaced by Taylor Gray and Archie Olivier-Townrow.

The Swall had the first chance of the game, with a shot from Cam Harris setting an early tone, keeping the Sleaford defence alive to potential danger. Whilst this was the first chance, the Greens had more of the ball and were arguably on top from here. The main chance in the first half for Sleaford included a free kick from deep which met the head of Lewis Rowland, but the attacker's header didn’t cause enough threat to panic goalkeeper Harley Middleton.

Late on in the half, the hosts showed strength in attack, with Town goalkeeper Josh Wilson being forced into making some good saves. One of these saves came against Swall striker Joe Godfrey, who made a run from wide into the box, shooting from a tight angle, forcing a superb save by Sleaford’s number one.

The second half brought more chances for the hosts, with Sleaford equal to it. An original shot from a blue shirt hit the underside of the crossbar, with the ball bouncing back off the line. As Swallownest players lined up to tap it in, Wilson pushed the ball away from danger, giving the Greens a lifeline. The lifeline didn’t last long, however, with a goal for Swallownest looking likely to be a winner. A throw-in on the right-hand side found top scorer Harley Butcher-Simpson who, after beating his man, played a ball into the box which was cut back to the unmarked Muirhead, who calmly converted his effort past Wilson.

Whilst it felt like the match was going to come to a sorry end for Sleaford, the players remained determined. A corner from Riley Wilkinson met the head of captain Jonathan Timmins. His shot went towards goal, and hit the side of Whalen, who got the vital touch that saw the ball go in to make the game level again. This goal brought frustration upon the Swallownest players who protested a handball from Sleaford’s goalscorer. After a conversation with the linesman, the referee confirmed the goal had been given, and sin-binned Middleton for choice words said in the heat of the moment.

Whalen’s close range deflected goal was the final action of the match, with the referee blowing for full time and the teams settling with a point apiece. The Greens can now keep their heads high as they turn their attention to a trip to Nottinghamshire next Saturday (November 29), facing Clifton All Whites in more league action.

Match report by Finley Smithson.