Hednesford 1 Merthyr Tydfil 1
New manager Simon Line saw his Hednesford side earn a battling draw at home to Welsh outfit Merthyr Tydfil.
But the Keys Park faithful came away from the game knowing their side should have claimed all three points. A hard-fought end-to-end game saw goalkeepers from both sides make vital saves in the second half of this Zamaretto Premier League clash.
Merthyr started the game strongly, with Cortez Belle giving Richard Walker a difficult time of it. The away side's pressure paid dividends on seven minutes, when sloppy play by Sam Aiston gifted Kris Leek space on the edge of the area and the tricky midfielder drove the ball past the despairing goalkeeper Gavin Ward.
Hednesford rocked following the goal, with slack defending giving Leek two further opportunities that he failed to capitalise on.
The home side weathered the storm and came back into the game with Ben Bailey shooting fiercely over the bar on 19 minutes.
Four minutes later, Ross Dyer beat offside trap after a Bailey pass and coolly rounded goalkeeper Andrew Delve, to slot the ball into an empty net to equalise.
Merthyr started the second period much like they began the first, as Hednesford struggled to cope with the tricky Tariq Khalil and man-mountain Belle.
Ward was forced into an acrobatic diving save to deny substitute Marcus Griffiths on 51 minutes and from the resulting corner Belle scuffed a shot straight at the keeper.
As an absorbing game ebbed and flowed, Ward saved well from a Leek header on 78 minutes as the away side threatened to grab a winner. The best and final chance of the game fell to the scurrying Elliott Durrell, as he slipped past two defenders and hit a squirming shot just past the far post.
Some in the ground thought the ball had sneaked into the net but it wasn't to be. Merthyr left Keys Park content with a point, but Line will feel his new charges did just enough to warrant a victory.
Line will continue his new start with a difficult trip to Buxton in the FA Trophy next Saturday, as he looks to do what caretaker boss Bernard McNally and former manager Dean Edwards failed to accomplish - win a game in a cup competition this season.
Hednesford: Ward, Platt, Martin, Walker, Goodhead, Bailey (Lycett 83), Durrell, Aiston, Barnett, Dyer 23, Nisbett (Gibson 73).
Subs not used: Amos, Flynn, Overton
Merthyr Tydfil: Delve, Williams, Keddle, Thomas, Gregory, Warton, Khalil, Jones (Clarke 20), Shepherd (Griffiths 62), Belle, Leek.
Subs not used: Dorrian, Armitage, Trotman
Attendance: 411
