A point apiece for London Colney and Harpenden Town

SSML Division One

London Colney 1 Harpenden Town 1

AN EVENLY contested local derby saw honours even at Cotlandswick on Saturday. The home side started the brighter but a solid Town defence ensured no real chances falling to Colney’s inform strike duo of Matt Newman and Jimmy Warner.

Town gradually got a foothold into the game with skipper Danny Green and Tom Burns winning the midfield battle. Jack Coombs showed his class on the left hand side of midfield with some fantastic ability and was pivotal as Town dominated the last 15 minutes of the first half but the Colney defence also played their part with a resolute performance.

A shuffle at half time saw Ryan Denys and Mark Hitchcock swap places which immediately paid dividends as some smart play saw Coombes rifle Town two minutes after the restart.

Colney tried to get a foothold back into the game and after a good period of pressure they forced an equaliser from ex-Town man Warner.

Half chances fell to both sides as both sets of players gave everything searching for the winner. The best chance fell to Town’s Denys but the Colney ‘keeper Mark Whittamore saved smartly.

Town boss Bob Fowler was pleased with his side’s efforts and said: “It was an even game which at times lacked a bit of quality but you cannot fault the effort of both teams. I felt we just shaded it with us having a great chance to win it late on but it wasn’t to be.”

“Fowler also commented on his skipper Green’s performance: “I thought Tom and Danny were great in the middle of the park but Danny Green showed again why he is the captain of this team. We sometimes take it for granted the work he does in there but today he never let his opponents settle and it built a good platform for us. Overall I was pleased with my team’s performance.”