Hitchin Town Football Club

Swindon Supermarine 0 Hitchin Town 0

Tuesday, March 11 2008

Wind blasted and frozen it may have been, but Hitchin carved out another point towards survival in a game that won't live on in the memory longer than it took the Canaries party to get back to Top Field.

If nothing else, this game underscored the illogical construction of non-league football - a team left home at 3.30pm and arrived back at 1am after playing a game in front of 102 people - geography and carbon footprints just don't come into it!

As for the game itself, Hitchin will perhaps look upon it as two points dropped given their first half performance but overall, a draw was a fair result - certainly the teams deserved something for playing in quite inhospitable conditions.

A few weeks ago, a goalless draw at Swindon Supermarine would have been something of a triumph, but this current Hitchin eleven had an air of dissatisfaction about them. But the margin between survival and relegation is being eroded by the game and the last three games have yielded five points, a reasonable haul by any standards.

Paul Barnes and Mark Ducket both had good first half chances, the latter striking the outside of the post as Hitchin had slightly the upper hand.

After the break, Swindon were in the ascendancy although Martin Bennett, who had another steady game, had little to worry him. A long range effort by Richard Kear went just over the bar and Cedric Abraham cut inside and shot wide.

Tom Pepper, set up by Mark Barnes, saw his drive well saved by Swindon keeper Tom King and Ducket had a long range effort that was just inches too high.

Swindon had their best opportunity eight minutes from the end, a Hitchin attack broke down and Ash Edenborough raced away and sent a shot-cum-cross into the area that only just eluded the Hitchin goal.

Hitchin's best moves came in the dying minutes, a good surging run by David Deeney that ended with a low shot going the wrong side of the post, and, a glancing header from Mark Barnes from a Ducket cross, but neither broke the deadlock.

Swindon: King, Lapham, Allen, Horgan, Henry, Abraham, Edenborough, Thompson, Draycott, Kear (Lightbody 80), Stroud (Rigley 70)

Hitchin: Bennett, Deeney, Pepper, Williams, Gilbert, Smith, Lewis, Gregson (Barr 90), P.Barnes, M.Barnes, Ducket

Referee: M.Downey

Attendance: 102

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