Ardley battle to make their point tell

Davis saw Ardley pick up a hard earned point for a battling performance in the stalemate with premier division highfliers Thatcham on Saturday.

Thatcham almost took an early lead straight but Jon Bennett fluffed a simple chance as he shot wide and that set the tone for his side’s afternoon as the entire team seemed to have left their shooting boots in the bus. Tom Melledew and Josh Helmore also failed to convert when they seemed sure to score but it was not all one-way traffic as Ardley posed their own threats and could have snatched the lead.

Jacob Daffern fired Reece Bayliss’s cross just past the angle of bar and post and Ade Talabi, who was a thorn in the side for the Thatcham defence all afternoon, fired just past the far post after riding several tackles as he burst into the box form the left flank.

The second half saw the same outcome as chances came and went. Helmore put the ball into the side-netting when well placed and Carl Tappin elected to try an attempt overhead kick when a header may have been the better option for the hosts.

Josh Baines came closest to scoring for the visitors but his fierce drive came crashing back off the bar and moments later substitute Shane Cooper-Clark suffered the same malaise as the rest of his team by shooting Callum Willmoth’s cross wide when he should have done better.

Again Ardley had their chances but Talabi’s shot went wide of the post and then a goalmouth scramble was eventually cleared by the Thatcham rearguard. The closing stages saw the visitors press in search of a winner but Ardley survived to claim a point in their battle to pull away from the drop zone.