United 1 Aldershot 1
When luck is going against you and your form is patchy at best the last thing you need is to encounter a referee who seemed less than accurate with some of his decisions and a well fought draw feels like a disappointment.
This match had just about everything, chances, saves, injuries, a sending off and a couple of goals (maybe three if you believe every story coming off the pitch) and most importantly a return to form for United.
Bucks made two changes from the team that started at Macclesfield; Kevin Nicholson & Lee Mansell returned to the starting line-up at the expense of Lee Hodges, who dropped to the bench, and Chris Todd who missed out on the bench altogether. This meant that Chris Robertson switched from right back to left centre half and only Todd was missing from the team that started the play-off final against Cambridge back in May!
The first chance of the match went to the visitors in the eighth minute when Winfield headed a free kick onto the crossbar and Marvin Morgan pounced on the loose ball but Michael Poke mad up ground superbly to get a foot to the ball and clear his lines. Aldershot were clearly in comfortable mood and were trying to play some tidy football but United weren't in the mood to take any prisoners and the match suited United with the numerous breaks for fouls and knocks.
Chris Robertson tested Jaimes-Ruiz in the Aldershot goal with a stinging header in the 20th minute and from the rebound United skipper Chris Hargreaves was adamant he had scored when the ball looked to have crossed the line but the referee waved play on. Just after the half hour mark United tested Jaimes-Ruiz again when Kevin Nicholson struck a low shot from a Nicky Wroe short free-kick toward the bottom right corner of the visitor's goal but Ruiz was up to the challenge and tipped the ball around the post for a corner.
Elliot Benyon will be disappointed with his 34th minute header from a good position which went well wide after excellent build-up play from Nicholson and Stevens down the left as the Gulls looked the more likely to open the scoring. Five minutes before the break United were at it again, this time Hargreaves and Stevens produced an opening for Benyon and he had the awareness to look up and square the ball to Tim Sills, but Jaimes-Ruiz was alert again and made a smart save to deny the Gulls' striker.
A very encouraging first half from United but there was more hard work to be done if the losing streak was to be broken.
Half-Time: United 0 Aldershot 0
The visitors started the second half very aggressively and it took an excellent sliding recovery tackle from Mark Ellis to deny Aldershot a scoring chance but from the resultant corner the real drama of the night began. At the time of writing it was still unclear why the referee gave Aldershot a penalty, some say it was for a handball offence, others were adamant that a foul was given, ultimately it was a decision that sent the United players berserk and left Marvin Morgan with the chance to beat Michael Poke and put the Shots one up, which he duly did.
Goal: United 0 Aldershot 1 (Morgan pen 48)
United responded superbly to falling a goal behind and the Plainmoor faithful were in full support of their side as they tried to right a perceived wrong. Wayne Carlisle struck an 18 yard shot over the bar as United pressed and Mark Ellis headed narrowly wide from a Nicholson corner. It was all Torquay and Winfield cleared off the line to deny Robertson a headed goal in the 67th minute.
Substitution: Scott Rendell replaced Elliot Benyon (72)
Scott Rendell almost made an immediate impact when he got a looping header in on the Aldershot goal but Jamies-Ruiz was agile enough to gather the ball and take a hit from Sills which earned the Gulls' forward a yellow card. It was to prove a vital moment in the game. Danny Stevens was getting the better of his marker as the match wore on and showed him a clean pair of heels more than once as United continued to press.
Another flying save denied Robertson and from the cleared ball Aldershot broke and only two superb quick-fire saves from Michael Poke kept United in the match. From that passage of play the Gulls attacked themselves down the right and a Nicky Wroe cross deflected off an Aldershot defender and into the path of Tim Sills who headed in off Winfield's arm to deservedly equalize.
Goal: United 1 (Sills 83) Aldershot 1
Four minutes from time the referee produced a decision that was at best baffling and at worst dreadful. A deep cross evaded Sills and Winfield and as both players turned to chase the ball down Sills looked to trip over the Shots defender's leg. It certainly didn't look like a dive and Winfield didn't look to have done anything intentional but the man in the middle decided that Sills had basically cheated and simulated a foul and showed him his second yellow card. There was a short expression of bewilderment on Sills' face followed by rage as he saw the card brandished and United skipper Chris Hargreaves pleaded forlornly for a rethink by the official.
An entertaining, 100 mile an hour match that United should have won but even a draw right now is a huge plus and will give players and supporters plenty to look forward to as we await the visit of Bury to Plainmoor on Saturday.
