Ten-man Kidsgrove Athletic earn a point at home to Market Drayton Town which saw them move seven points away from the play-offs with three games in hand.

Oliver Jepson gave the Grove the lead after 16 minutes of play. However, they were pegged back by a controversial Connor Hughes strike just 13 minutes later.

The hosts were also reduced to ten men following the equaliser as Lee Williamson was sent off in the aftermath of the goal.

The Grove made the brighter start to the League encounter and they had an opportunity to break the deadlock inside four minutes when Sam Hall’s low drive from 20 yards was well held by Sam Agius after the midfielder was teed up by Williamson.

Then after dominating the early stages of the game without creating too many clear cut chances, centre back Jepson handed Kidsgrove the lead on the 17th minute mark when he smashed the ball into the top right hand corner after latching on to a loose ball from a Williamson corner from the right that couldn’t be cleared by the Market Drayton defence.

The hosts could have also had a second three minutes later when Kieran Coates whipped in a great ball from the right which found Alex Morris at the back post but his first time effort flew wide of the near post.

The Grove then had a penalty claim turned down on 24 minutes when France from the right hand side of the box tried to hook the ball across goal but it was blocked by what the home side believed to be a hand. However the referee instantly waved away all claims and awarded a corner kick.

Just before the half hour mark, the visitors equalised against the run of play, when a corner from the left was met at the back post but the attempt was kept out superbly by Harrison. The rebound by Hughes was again parried away by the goalkeeper. However, the linesmen adjudged the second effort to have crossed the line.

The decision left the hosts infuriated due to them being convinced that the ball didn’t cross the line leading to Williamson being sent off for dissent, putting Kidsgrove really up against the cosh.

On the 36th minute, the home side went close to regaining the lead but James Butler’s header following a Tom France corner narrowly sailed over the crossbar. Before Coates hit a sweet volley just wide of the goal. Had it gone in, then it would have been an amazing goal.

Ruben Wiggins-Thomas would be wondering how he didn't score just before the break when Coates played him in. However, his low effort was well saved by Agius.

After the restart, Kidsgrove began the half in the same kind of way that they ended the first as in the 48th minute Crewe Alexandra loanee Regan Griffiths worked a bit of room on the edge of the box, but his low effort was tame allowing Agius to collect

Even though the hosts were dominating affairs, Market Drayton’s captain Connor Russo tried to catch Harrison off his line on 65 minutes with a lobbed effort from range, but it landed on the roof of the net instead of under the crossbar.

Then with 11 minutes remaining Kidsgrove should have gone back ahead, when a Morris cross from the left was parried away as far as Jepson, who had been changed to a striker following the sending off, but his strike was brilliantly sprawled away by Agius.

With two minutes left, substitute Isacc Minott had a chance to win it, but he could not make a clean connection when found from a corner on the left hand side. The follow up then fell to Wiggins-Thomas who thought he was fouled inside the box but the referee waved away the appeals.

Minott had another opportunity to steal away all three points in the second minute of stoppage time but his drive from range just flashed wide of the top right hand corner.

Although with the last kick of the game the away side nearly won it themselves, when a cross from the right by Tom Nixon was aimed towards Jamie Hands but he couldn’t get a touch to the ball in an opportunity that looked easier to score than miss.

The result itself sees Kidsgrove remain in seventh, seven points off the play-offs whereas Market Drayton Town drop into the relegation zone on goal difference.

Kidsgrove Athletic: Harrison, Coates, Morris, Jepson(Minott,74), Duffy, Butler, Griffiths, Hall, France (Blake, 45), Wiggins-Thomas, Williamson.
Unused Sub: Sankoh

Market Drayton Town: Agius, Nixon, Bennet, Hands, Hughes, Nash, Tindall-Bennet(O’Toole, 60), Green-Birch, Thomas, M O’Reilly(Hill, 68), Russo(Graybrook, 79).
Unused Subs: J O’Reilly, Price