Gainsborough Trinity picked up a good point on Tuesday night after a 1-1 draw against Matlock Town, in what proved to be a struggle for Russ Wilcox’s side.
Trinity came into the game looking to go level on points with Matlock, hoping to recreate the form from the reverse fixtures result which saw Gainsborough pick up all three points with a 2-0 win.
The hosts made one change from the side that lost 4-0 to Macclesfield with Aaron Simpson coming in at right-back for Sisa Tuntulwana.
Struggling to get control:
Only shortly after kick-off, Montel Gibson managed to capitalise on a scrappy corner early on which saw Dylan Cogill fire the ball against the Matlock forward, allowing him to poke the ball home to put the visitors in front.
Following the disastrous start Fraser Preston looked to respond for Trinity shortly after with a great effort from just outside the box that struck the crossbar.
The away team hit back with a superb effort from a free kick saw Matlock’s Adam Clayton hit the crossbar, with Charlie Oglesby pouncing on the rebound following it in and rattling the crossbar yet again from just outside the six-yard box.
Luis Butroid managed to grab an equaliser for Trinity with a sweet left footed shot into the bottom right corner following a lovely pass from Dec Howe on 29 minutes. Wilcox’s side had struggled, but it was a lovely move to draw them level.
An opportunity to grab another just before half-time came and went for Trinity’s Scunthorpe United loanee Sam Fishburn. He would have hoped to do better, but saw his header at the far post flash wide.
Moments after the home side headed into the changing room at the end of a poor first-half display.
If you can’t win, don’t lose:
Russ Wilcox would have been disappointed following the restart, as Jake Thompson hit the post for Matlock’s third time after a break down the right-hand side.
A great piece of defending from skipper Cogill managed to keep the score all level with a clearance off the line following a dangerous effort from Montel Gibson.
Things went from bad to worse for Trinity, as Will Lancaster received a straight red card after he brought down Gibson who was in on goal with ten minutes to play. The away team’s number nine proved to be a huge problem for the Holy Blues throughout the evening.
Gainsborough held out to take a point from the KAL Group Stadium, placing Trinity 17th in the league. They will look to pick up their first win in eight league games when they travel to Stockton Town at the weekend.