A penalty from Dean Perrow in the closing minutes earned Chasetown FC a point in a hard-fought fixture at Matlock Town.
The hosts were on top for much of the evening in an entertaining game, Darren Stride and John Branch the two stand-out players for the Scholars while Ben Jevons netted their other goal in a 2-2 draw.
Debuting their new all-white change strip, the evening got off to a bad start for the Scholars as a mis-kick from Chris Slater in the very first minute saw the ball played through by the hosts to Ian Holmes in space on the left and his shot sliced across Ryan Price into the far corner of the net.
Holmes could have made it two in the sixth minute but this time Ryan Price was able to clear, but the score was soon level after some good positional play on the left saw the ball crossed to Ben Jevons in front of keeper Jon Kennedy and he flicked a right-footed shot into the corner.
The fast-paced end-to-end action continued, both goalkeepers pressed into action including a fine fingertip save from Kennedy to deny Alex Steadman on 26 minutes while Price reacted well to catch a cross from Chris Bettney with Tyeisse Nightingale closing in.
A 36th-minute scramble saw Price save Holmes’ final shot with his legs just as the whistle went for offside, while Darren Stride came close to his maiden Scholars goal but his header was inches wide of the upright as the visitors continued to show determined and encouraging form against a lively Gladiators side.
The hosts’ next chance came courtesy of a break by Gareth Davies on the left but his cross flew high and wide, the half closing with another Gladiators cross sent wide by skipper James Lukic.
The second half started in similar fashion with both sides producing lively and rapid football, the Scholars going close through Jevons and Gary Hay while John Branch had to work hard out on the left to counter Matlock pressure.
The Gladiators were all set to take the lead in the 66th minute when Nightingale burst past two defenders and evaded Price, but the midfielder somehow skewed his shot wide of the post and then did the same one minute later under pressure from Richard Teesdale, Holmes not quite able to add a finishing touch as the ball rolled wide.
Chasetown were next to go close following a period of pinball, the ball played into the box by Mark Branch but Jevons’ rocket shot flew inches over the crossbar.
On 72 minutes Nightingale made up for his earlier disappointment as he outpaced Slater in from the left and his shot from a tight angle found its target to put Matlock back in the lead.
Price then spilled a cross from the right three minutes later with substitute Lee Whittington in position to add a third but Jevons was thankfully able to clear, while Stride blocked a shot from Holmes as he and Nightingale continued to cause trouble for the Scholars.
Just as it looked as if Matlock were set for three points, Lee Featherstone brought down Perrow in the area and the striker stepped up to send Kennedy the wrong way and draw the Scholars level with just one minute left on the clock.
Chasetown now gear up for a big trip to the much-fancied FC United of Manchester this Saturday (August 20), 3pm kick-off, at Gigg Lane, home of Bury FC.
Matlock: Kennedy, Harcourt, Featherstone, King, Sturdy, Lukic (c), Bettney, Nightingale, Holmes, Davies, Warne. Subs: Whittington (Warne 62), Joynes (Nightingale 83), Mallon, Kendall, Buxton.
Chasetown: Price, J Branch, Peel, Slater, Stride, Teesdale (c), Stephens, Jevons, Birch, Hay, Steadman. Subs: Sedgemore (Stephens 78), Perrow (Hay 76), Farquharson, M Branch (Peel 31).
