A roller coaster of a match eventually saw honours shared at three apiece but neither team will be over happy with this final outcome, even though before the game, Ashford would undoubtedly have accepted a draw on a ground where they have failed to pick up even a single point in all their previous visits.

Ashford were unchanged from the previous Saturday, with Russell Canderton and Vinnie O’Sullivan still not fit to return.  The match started with the home side very much in control and it was no great surprise when they went ahead after just six minutes.  Ashford attacks were spasmodic but they equalised on nineteen minutes when they were awarded a penalty for a foul that saw the home defender sent off for preventing a goal scoring opportunity.  The usually reliable Byron Harrison saw his effort saved by Tony Tucker in the Woods goal but Scott Weight was the first one to react, sweeping the rebound into the net.

The sending off did Ashford no favours, with the ten men clearly infused with a fresh determination and it was very much against the run of play when Ashford’s star man Warren Harris put the visitors ahead in the 56^th minute.  To their credit the home side’s efforts became ever more concentrated and the almost inevitable equaliser arrived with fifteen minutes left.  A further lapse in the Ashford defensive ranks then saw Wood go ahead and it seemed the home side had successfully turned the match around.

They made the mistake though, maybe sub-consciously, of sitting back and Ashford started to look more dangerous than they had at any point in the match, with player manager Jamie Lawrence now on for Adam Logie in midfield.  It all seemed too late though but just as the match went into stoppage time, Paul Johnson swung over another dangerous corner kick.  Scott Harris managed a superb flick, the ball rebounding to younger brother Warren’s feet and he confidently struck it home for the equaliser and his own second goal.

A free kick then almost lead to an unlikely win as a shot went over but overall it was a point gained, with Ashford’s unbeaten league run now extending to five games.  Boreham Wood will doubtless consider they did enough to win the match but could possibly reflect upon the fact that whilst they missed innumerable chances, the visitors made excellent use of the relatively few opportunities that came their way, scoring three goals for the second week in a row. 

Terry Ryan's Match Report is now available.

In their first match for some three weeks, the Suburban side failed to build upon their recent good form, losing 1-2 at home to Northwood, Ashford’s goal being an o.g.