11/12/99: Ryman League Division Three

Epsom and Ewell 3 Tring Town 3

Tring missed the chance to move four places up the league as they threw away a three-goal half-time lead in Saturday's match against Epsom at Banstead.

Tring made a great start to the match when they took the lead in only the second minute. Neal Bartlett's cross was met by Scott Walters with a header which should have been easy for Epsom keeper Dave Hyatt to gather, but Hyatt dropped the ball and Steve Groves nipped in to put the rebound away.

They almost went two up on 14 minutes when Matt Myatt's cross was teed up for Groves by Walters, but Groves shot just wide. Tring then survived a prolonged period of pressure from the home side with some dogged defending, and were rewarded by going 2-0 ahead on 24 minutes. A corner was only cleared to the edge of the area, where Gary Woolf took possession and struck an excellent low shot into the corner of the net.

Three minutes before the break it became even better for Tring. As they broke away down the right, Myatt provided the cross which Eddie Gerrard met with a first time shot to send Tring into the break 3-0 ahead and looking certain of only their second away league win of the season.

Tring almost extended their lead further on 57 minutes. Rob McKane chested down a diagonal cross from Bartlett and got in a shot which beat Hyatt but was cleared off the line by a defender. That proved a turning point, as three minutes later Epsom got back into the game. A deep cross to the far post was not defended well, and Barry Stevens hit a shot which seemed to come off his shin, but was still strong enough to beat Keith McLoughlin.

The home side sensed blood, and within two minutes had pulled another goal back. Again a cross was defended poorly, and the ball was headed down for Graham Morris to rifle home from six yards out and leave Tring distinctly rattled.

Scott Walters almost gave Tring another cushion with a header that was turned round the post by Hyatt, but it was Epsom that were applying all the pressure by now, and an equaliser looked inevitable. It arrived on 77 minutes when Epsom again broke quickly after Tring had given the ball away in midfield. The ball was crossed to Graham Sell, who turned and hit a shot that was not the hardest, but had enough pace to trickle into the corner of the net.

Given the extent to which the match had turned, it looked likely that Tring would come away with nothing, but they just about managed to hold on over the closing minutes for a point that was scant consolation after the optimism of the first half.

Team: McLoughlin, Bartlett, Simpson, Bateman, Aldridge, Woolf, Gerrard, McKane, Myatt, Walters, Groves (Boad)