This Saturday, after another nerve-jangling morning watching my daughter's very depleted squad earn a tough point (this time against one of her old teams), I decided stay fairly local for the afternoon's entertainment. A short journey up the M40 for a Ben Turner Cup quarter-final between Oxfordshire Senior League Division Two side, Hornton, and the leaders of Division One, Witney Town. I last visited Hornton's delightful ground, The Cauldron, back in October 2023 when they beat Kings Sutton 3-1 in a league game (Countryside Caldera). Not too much has changed since that visit, although I do believe some extra hard-standing has been added towards the clubhouse end.
Last season, these two teams competed in the same division, with Witney winning the league and Hornton finishing in the lower half. Witney won both encounters, 3-0 at home and 3-2 in Hornton, a game that saw Hornton's Sam Sherpa-Moore see red.
This season Witney have gone from strength to strength and currently sit top of Division One, ten points clear albeit having played more games. Hornton are sitting in fifth spot, eight points from the promotion places. This position has been mainly down to their home form, where they have taken 10 points from five games.
Witney had already played a game to get to this stage of the competition, beating Hanney 5-2. It would, however, be Hornton's first game in the tournament this season, after receiving a bye in Round One. In last season' Ben Turner Cup, both Hornton and Witney were eliminated by the same team, eventual beaten finalists, North Leigh Reserves.
Many thanks to referee Barry Darvell and Hornton manager Liam Manley for sharing the team sheets prior to kick-off.

​On a very heavy pitch, kicking towards the clubhouse end in the first half, it was the lower-ranked, home side who started the stronger. Despite the fact that they had to make a last-minute change to their starting line-up when one of their players couldn't make the early kick-off on time, they set about their task with a certain vigour.
Having said that, the first effort to cause any kind of concern was Dom Griffin's 4th minute strike that fairly whistled over Matt Brice's crossbar. 
After that, it became the Tom Bennington show for a the next 20 minutes. The Witney goalkeeper took centre stage as the home side created a series of chances. The first save came on 8 minutes when Bennington was forced to go full-length to his right to fingertip Sam Sherpa-Moore's rasping drive around the post. A minute later the visiting stopper was quickly off his line to block from Olly Richards. Then, approaching the quarter-hour, Bennington produced the best stop yet when, after a great move down the left, Hornton fed the ball across the face of goal to Sherpa-Moore, coming in on the back post. Bennington somehow got across his goal to make a point-blank stop from the stunned striker.
On the half-way point, Bennington finally proved he was human when he spilled another Sherpa-Moore effort, recovering quickly to grab the ball before it squirmed over the line. Sherpa-Moore could easily have had a hat-trick and his side probably should be in front. However, it was still goalless. That was when Witney hit their hosts with a stunning three-goal salvo.
With 24 minutes on the clock and Griffin's 4th minute strike still the closest they had come, Witney sent a long ball forward up the left-hand channel. Hornton tried to shepherd the ball out for a goal-kick, but the heavy ground held it up. Before it could cross the line, the ball was slipped across the face of goal where Adam Holloway was lurking to stab past Brice. 0-1.
The home players had barely caught their breath from that shock when they found themselves two goals down, and this time it was an excellent piece of football from The Blanketmen. A series of quick passes sent Tyler Dix free on the left. He played the ball into the path of Redi Karaj, bursting into the box. Karaj took one touch in his stride before slipping the ball past Brice. 0-2. Lovely goal.
Witney were now full of confidence and, on 28 minutes, they made it three goals inside four minutes. Mercayd Morgan-Allen burst down the right, firing a low ball across the six-yard box to find Dom Griffin, who slammed the ball into the net. 0-3.
Shell-shocked Hornton, to their credit, steadied the ship from this point, but they couldn't find a way back to the dominance they showed in the opening minutes. Witney, now with a big cushion, also tightened things up, not allowing the home strikers the amount of room they got earlier on.

HT Hornton 0 Witney Town 3. An extraordinary half in some ways. Hornton were on top until the first Witney goal went in. That goal seemed to light a fire in the visitors, who suddenly bean playing with a renewed confidence and style.

The second half began in a very similar way to the beginning of the first half, Bennington making yet another save from the unfortunate Sam Sherpa-Moore, who was getting increasingly frustrated and had already picked up  yellow card.
The Hornton striker's mood was probably helped a little in the 53rd minute though, when he finally got the better of his nemesis, drilling the ball past the Witney stopper from the edge of the box. 1-3.
Having got a goal back, it was Hornton's turn to be inspired. Just past the hour, Daniel Hirst tried his luck from distance but couldn't trouble Bennington. Hornton were getting far more of the ball at this point, but couldn't find a way back into the game. Then, with just over 20 minutes remaining, Witney sealed their progress with a fourth goal. A long ball forward found Griffin, who was held up by Horton captain Peter Thorne. Griffin did well to hold the ball up though, waiting for reinforcement to arrive. Some quick feet engineered a yard allowing Griffin to fire the ball across the box where Adam Holloway had arrived, unmarked. All the striker had to do was put his head on the ball and it was game over. 1-4
At this point both sides knew that the game was up. Hornton, to their credit, kept pushing, but Witney were relatively comfortable now, and defended solidly to see the game out.

FT Hornton 1 Witney Town 4. Witney progress to the semi-final with what, on paper, looks like a comfortable victory. In reality, it was far from that. Their goalkeeper, Tom Bennington, must take full credit, and man of the match, for keeping them in the game early on, before they hit their hosts with a stunning trio of goals.
Hornton are back in league action next Saturday as they make the journey to fourth placed Dorchester, who won 4-1 at The Cauldron in the county cup back in October.
Witney, meanwhile, have a weekend off before they make the trip to relegation threatened Charlton United. Witney won the reverse fixture 5-0 with a hat-trick from Jack Morton and two from Adam Holloway.

Hornton: Brice, Burton, Bowden, Hist, Jordan, Lee, Sherpa-Moore, Phillips, Richards, Sabin, Thorpe(c). Subs: Boyle, Fox, Hillman, Middleton, Manley
Witney Town: Bennington, Shayler, Dix, Clarke, Robinson, Walker, Oliver(c), Preston-Carrey, Holloway, Karaj, Griffin. Subs: Morgan-Allen, H.Jackson, G.Jackson, Edwards

The Programme
Hornton produced a programme for this game, priced at £2. With 16 full-colour pages, it contains all of the features you'd expect. A column from the Hornton boss, Liam Manley and another from club captain, Peter Thorne. Coach Steve Jesic provides the column welcoming players and supporters. There are a few photos from last season's meeting between the sides, stats from Hornton's last game and a piece on today's visitors.
Well worth purchasing as a way of adding a few extra pennies to club's coffers.

Ground Number: Re-visit
Att: 36 (manual count. not mine)
Entrance: 
Programme: £2.00

​This Saturday BotP headed back up to the Midlands for a massive South Birmingham derby in Division Two of the Midlands Football League, with table-toppers Northfield Town making the short journey over to second placed Cadbury Athletic. So, after a nervy morning watching my daughter's team score a 90th minute winner in a cup quarter-final, I headed up the M40, destination Birmingham Moseley Rugby Club, a new ground to me. Neither of these teams were new to me and, in fact, I had seen them both play at home in that, but before Cadbury moved to the rugby club. My last visit to Cadbury was in 2023 when they defeated Boldmere Sports 7 Social Falcons 7-0 in front of the iconic Edwardian sports pavilion (Cadbury's Spectacular Seven). My visit to Northfield was, however, much more recent. I was there between Christmas and New year to see their 4-1 home win over Bolehall Swifts (Third Time Lucky)
At the start of play today, Northfield held a 10-point lead over The Chocolate Men, although Cadbury did have two games in had, making this a particularly important game for both teams. A win for Athletic would close the gap to seven, with the possibility of that becoming one if Cadbury could win their games in hand. A win for Town would give them a massive 13-point advantage with 10 games to play.
Cadbury were also coming into the game with an unbeaten home record, although Northfield were yet to taste defeat on the road. Both teams had only lost once this season. Tellingly, Cadbury's defeat came at the hands of Northfield, who beat them 2-0 at Shenley Lane back in December, a game that saw Athletic reduced to 10 when Alex Considine picked up two yellow cards.
Thanks to the match officials for sharing the team sheets with me prior to kick-off. Very much appreciated

​As you would expect in such an important contest, the opening minutes were very cagey with both sides keeping things tight and not wanting to be the first to concede. Having said that, even with few chances, the first quarter of an hour seemed to fly by.
The visitors were the first to create an opening when Adam Garmson managed to get a header on target in the 17th minute. However, it was a comfortable save for Fraser Oliver. At this point it was still a very evenly balanced game, but Northfield were beginning to up their game. 
It looked like it may take something special to break either defence down and, just past the midway stage of the half, that's exactly what happened. Northfield were awarded a free-kick some 30 yards out which Adam Garmson stepped to take, sending an absolute screamer flying into Oliver's top left corner. 0-1
The goal certainly gave the visitors a little extra boost and, whilst not dominating the ball, they were certainly on top at this point. Cadbury were struggling to make many inroads against a very well organised Town defence.
Thomas Walker, in the Northfield goal, did have to be quick off his line in the 34th minute, winning the footrace to clear before Wade Malley could latch onto a through ball. That aside, the Town stopper didn't have too much to deal with. Although, deep into added time, he was left helpless as a ball flashed across the face of his goal only inches from two purple-shirted players flying. Neither could get a touch and very soon afterwards the referee drew a close the first half.

HT Cadbury Athletic 0 Northfield Town 1. A very tight encounter between two well-matched sides. The only difference so far being a piece of individual brilliance.

​The home side began the second half with a renewed vigour and, seven minutes in, almost got themselves back on level terms when Callum Burston-Keeley's well-struck free-kick almost deceived Walker. Maybe the ball took a deflection or maybe it just swerved. Whatever the case, the Northfield keeper was forced to readjust and make a good save with his feet to keep the ball out. Five minutes later, however, Walker was left powerless. Once a gain the initial threat came from Burston-Keeley, who drove up the left before sending over a low ball that wrong-footed the defence. The ball was only half-cleared, straight into the path of John Baker, who smashed the ball back past Walker. 1-1
Northfield's response was almost immediate when Lewis McPike's shot looked to be goal-bound before purple captain James Morris rose to head clear. That was just past the hour mark. Five minutes later, the visitors got their noses back in front when a low cross from the left was met at the near post by Adam Garmson. 1-2
Back in front, Northfield looked to consolidate their position as the game began to get that little bit more feisty. No-one wants to lose a local derby and the passion from both sides was clear to see, both on the pitch and on the benches. A couple of debateable offside decisions going against the home side did little to cool down the tensions either. Both happened directly in line with me and I can say the second call was definitely offside, The first, however, when Burston-Keeley was set free, looked well on from my angle.
With ten minutes to go, Northfield came within inches of sealing the points when James Ward's dipping drive beat Oliver, but crashed back off the bar. The, with six minutes left, things really started to heat up.  First of all Northfield manager Ryan Smith was sent off for some rather vociferous comments to one of the assistants. A minute later Smith could, and should, have been even more upset. Cadbury attacked up the left again and when the ball fell into the path of James Morris, some 8 yards out, the Athletic captain somehow managed to clip the bar when, in all honesty, he should have buried the chance.
With a minute to go, Cadbury were then reduced to ten when Dean Fisher was sin-binned for, presumably, comments made to the referee. Almost immediately after the restart, there was another flashpoint when Alex Considine clattered McPike on the edge of the box, sparking a small melee, which the referee quickly dealt with.

FT Cadbury Athletic 1 Northfield Town 2. Well, from a neutral's perspective, what a great game. A thunderous 30 yard free-kick, crunching tackles across the park, two highly-committed teams, a sin-binning, a red card and a whopping 196 spectators. Brilliant entertainment.
So, where does that that leave us? Well, Northfield now hold a 13 point lead from Cadbury, who are now being chased hard by Birmingham United, three points behind after walloping Coventrians 9-1. I'm sure Northfield are not counting their chickens just yet, but it's hard to see them being caught now, especially as they have now won ten on the bounce and have only dropped two pints since mid-August. Next up, Cadbury make the trip to Tamworth to take on 10th placed Bolehall Swifts who they beat 4-1 in the reverse fixture. Northfield have a home Birmingham FA Vase match with Division 3 side, AFC Balsall.

Cadbury Athletic: Oliver, Gumbley, Cooke, Brooks, Morris(c), Considine, Froggatt, Fisher, Malley, Baker, Burston-Keeley. Subs: Alison, Maddocks, McGinn, Manning, Mudie
Northfield Town: Walker, Green, Tabberner, McPike, Ashmore, Wood, Ward, Westwood(c), Bourn, Garmson, Forbes. Subs: MacDonald, Wells, Need, Prince

The Ground
Birmingham Moseley Rugby Club is situated in the Billesley area of South Birmingham and is part of a multi-sport complex that includes a tennis and fitness centre, indoor bowls and a new Padel club. There's a large car park in front of the main pitch with access to the ground via a series of turnstiles. All of the facilities are on the opposite side of the ground from the entrance. A large clubhouse, bar and snack bar and an impressive main stand, straddling the halfway line, that provides ample covered seating. There's even an electronic scoreboard at one end of the ground. Obviously, the pitch is shared between the rugby club and the football club. However, the surface looked to be in very good condition, especially when considering the recent weather conditions. Opposite the ain stand there are two dugouts separated by what looked like a bus stop shelter.


Ground Number: 476
Att: 196
Entrance: £5.00
Programme:

It was another one of those weekends where my choice of match went down to the wire. There were games being cancelled left, right and centre. However, luckily for me, a very interesting county cup quarter-final game featuring a high-flying step 7 team at home to a step 6 side, was almost around the corner and, what's more, it was on.
The game in question? A Les underwood Junior Cup game between Northants Combo Premier League leaders Roade and Spartan South Midlands Division One outfit Rushden & Higham United. It was something of a coincidence that I ended up heading for Roade because I had spent the morning watching my daughter's team train after their county cup game, against Roade, was cancelled because the Roade team had, very sadly, folded. I do hope their players find other clubs soon. No-one wants to see a team fold. Unfortunately, under-16 girl's teams are prone to this especially with the pressure of exams looming.
On to today's game. Roade came into the match safe in the knowledge that they held a nine point lead at the top of the Northants Premier, even if local rivals Blisworth had two games in hand. This was a chance for them to test themselves against a team from the level above them. Rushden & Higham United, The Lankies, ply their trade in Division One of the Spartan South Midlands League, and are currently in mid-table. Their nickname comes from a previous incarnation, as Higham Town, when they played their home games on land belonging to The Duchy of Lancaster, hence the name, The Lankies.
This was a quarter-final of the junior county cup, effectively round three. Both sides had won home ties in round one. Roade beat Earls Barton United 2-0 whilst Rushden & Higham were 4-2 winners over FC Peterborough. In the second round Roade received a bye whilst United won a penalty shootout after drawing 0--0 at Raunds Town.
I'd like to say a massive thank you to the friendly and helpful staff at Roade, who went out of their way to get me access to both team sheets before the game.

​The opening encounters showed what a tight and tough encounter this was likely to be, with plenty of challenges flying in early on as both sides tried to establish themselves. The referee set his stall out early on, letting the game flow as much as possible, probably a little too much in the eyes of both teams. However, to be fair, he was letting things go on both sides.
Clear-cut chances were at a premium early on. Both teams had glimpses of goal in the opening 15 minutes, but neither could manage a breakthrough. Just before the 20 minute mark, Roade won a corner on their left which George Wingrove took, curling the ball in towards the visitor's goal. Goalkeeper Micky Ibbeson did well under pressure to push the ball away and was alert enough to grasp Andy Seaton's goal-bound header as it looped towards the corner. That was as close as either team had come so far, and it stayed that way until the 35th minute when Rushden took the lead. A short corner routine on the left seemed to have come to nothing when the ball was cleared towards the edge of the box. However, Johnny Carey was lurking to send a low shot past Michael Kirby. 0-1
The response from Roade was decisive and almost immediate. Only four minutes after going behind, the Step 7 side were level. It began with another Wingrove corner from the left. This was headed clear, but only back to the Roade number 10. He sent over a dangerous ball, with some pace, that Austin Bishop could only a glancing head to, sending the ball into his own net. 1-1

HT Roade 1 Rushden & Higham United 1. A very entertaining half from a neutral perspective. Two evenly matched teams who were both going flat out. A proper cup tie complete with an underlying bit of niggle.

​Roade, possibly buoyed by their equaliser, began the second half with renewed intent. Only two minutes after the restart JJ McCarthy forced Ibbeson into a flying save at full-stretch, to concede a corner. A few minutes later, however, even the excellent Lankies keeper was helpless as Ed Uka planted a free header past both the keeper and the far post. The Roade striker clearly annoyed that he hadn't put them in front. Then just before the hour Uka sent a low drive skidding past Ibbeson, only for the ball to crash back off the foot of the post.
Roade were definitely on the front foot at this point, keeping United penned back in their own half. Substitute Connor Letts was next to try his luck, sending a long-range effort wide of the mark, before Ibbeson came to United's rescue again on 64 minutes, producing a superb save to keep our McCarthy again.
Roade could easily have added three goals in the opening 20 minutes of the second half, if not for Ibbeson. Of course, as often happens in football, they came to rue these misses. United pressed forward and, a minute after almost conceding, they were awarded a penalty when Jason Okunnu was clearly tripped inside the area. No real arguments for Roade as Kai Magee stepped up and blasted his side back in front. 1-2
Roade responded as they did when going behind previously. However, this time, they were a little unlucky to see Uka's powerful header blocked  on the line. They were even more unlucky just a minute later when a long ball forward was miscued by a Roade defenders ending the ball spinning backwards over the top of their back-line. Kai Magee was alert to it, nipping in to loft the ball over Kirby and into the net. 1-3. Magee would be denied the chance of hat-trick after seemingly injuring himself in the act of scoring and having the go off. However, two goals in two minutes had seen the visitors give themselves breathing space, after being under some pressure early in the second half.
Two goals behind to a team a division above them could have spelled the end for Roade but, to their credit, they didn't let their heads drop and, with fifteen minutes remaining, they grabbed a lifeline. It was proper route one stuff. Kirby launched the ball downfield, his huge kick bouncing inside the United penalty area. Ibbeson came to claim but was challenged by both Uka and Wingrove. The ball slipped from his grasp as he landed, bouncing in front of Wingrove, who lofted it back into the unguarded net, amidst claims of a foul on the keeper. Nothing given and Roade were back in it. 2-3
The home side pressed forward looking for the leveller, but were indebted to defender Denham Salmon who got back behind his keeper to make a crucial goal-line headed clearance, saving a goal that would undoubtedly have finished the match. That proved to be the catalyst for a final push. Harrison Mackie's long punt forward almost caught out Ibbeson, who had to back-peddle to tip the ball over the bar. Then, three minutes into added time, Michael Osbourne sent the home supporters wild as he drilled the ball in from just inside the box. 3-3.
We would need penalties to separate the teams

FT Roade 2 Rushden & Higham United 3. A brilliant game of football to watch. Fully committed teams who competed to the very end of the game.

Penalties
Jack Bloodworth scores for Rushden. 0-1
George Wingrove scores for Roade. 1-1
Johnny Carey for The Lankies, in off the inside of the post. 1-2
Harrison Markie puts his effort wide. 1-2 after two kicks each.
Mason Jackson makes it 1-3 for the Lankies.
Denham Salmon scores to make it 2-3 after three each
Rushden goalkeeper Micky Ibbeson hits the post. Still 2-3
Roade stopper Michael Kirby to level it. Saved by Ibbeson 2-3
Jory Mann to win it for Rushden. Scores. 2-4

Rushden & Higham United progress to the semi-finals. All other quarter-finals were postponed, so they'll need to wait to see who they face from Woodford United v Blisworth, Harpole v Kettering Nomads and Desborough Town v Wellingborough Whitworth
Meanwhile, Roade have no fixture next week and will have to wait until the 24th, when they take on Kettering Nomads at home in the league, having won 2-0 in the reverse fixture.
The Lankies do have a match next Saturday, as they face a trip to Bell Close where they take on Leighton Town Reserves in the league.


Roade: Kirby, Lawton(c), Webster, Pannell, Seaton, Salmon, Faulkner, Collier, Uka, Wingrove, McCarthy. Subs: Daniels, Thorpe, Markie, Letts, Osbourne
Rushden & Higham United: Ibbeson, Dye, Jackson, Culwick, Bloodworth, Bishop, Okunnu, Palmer(c), Magee, Mann, Carey. Subs: Beasant, Demaj, King, Johnstone, Wells


Ground Number: Re-visit
Att: 
Entrance: N/A
Programme: N/A

​As often happens at this time of year, my original plans for this Saturday were scuppered by the weather, so Whetstone Athletic and St Patricks will have to wait for another day. Many thanks to St Patricks player-manager Sean Doy, for keeping me up to date with events in Leicestershire.
As always, I had a number of games on my list of possible so, with Whetstone off, I switched from one game involving teams that had climbed the leagues alongside each other, to a game involving two teams who were promoted together last season, Witney Town and Oakley United. Witney won the Oxfordshire Senior League Division Two last season, whilst Oakley came up even though they finished in fourth spot. Spoils were shared last season. Witney won this fixture 3-1, whilst Oakley were victorious at home, on the first day of the season, winning 4-0. During the season, BotP saw Witney beat Oxford Irish Athletic 4-1 at Gordon Way (Comfort Blanket) and, this time last year, I watched Oakley lose 3-0 at Stoke Mandeville in the Thomas Field Shield quarter-final (100% Stags).
Prior to kick off, Witney sat proudly atop the Division One table, 3 points ahead of Shipston Excelsior but having played two additional games. They'd only lost twice this season, but both of those had come at home. They were, however, on a run of five wins from their last six matches. Oakley started the day in 6th spot, 14 points behind their hosts but with four games in hand. They'd won two, lost two and drawn two of their last six, but were coming to Witney defending an unbeaten away record. This would be the first meeting of the teams this season.
A big thank you to referee Rob Jones for sharing the teams sheets, and having a chat before the game, and at half-time. Rob is known in my family as my daughter's favourite referee, despite the fact that he once had to threaten her with the sin-bin after a particularly vociferous complaint about a debatable offside flag.

​In front of a very sizeable crowd, on a bitterly cold afternoon, Witney started the stronger of the two teams without causing any immediate concern to visiting goalkeeper Micky Thompson. In fact, it was Oakley who were presented with the opening encounter's best opportunity when they were gifted the ball inside the Witney penalty area after eight minutes. However, they couldn't take advantage of the situation. After that wake-up call, Witney began to take control of the game.
Ryan Oliver was the first to go close, bursting clear on the right side before driving across the face of goal and narrowly wide of the far post for a goal-kick, despite Thompson getting the merest of fingertip touches to the shot. A few minutes later the home side went route one when a long ball over the top found Harrison Furlong who took on the shot first time, lifting the ball over Thompson but. unfortunately for Witney, over the bar too.
The Blanketmen were now well on top in terms of possession with goalkeeper Tom Bennington not much more than a spectator at this point.
Just after the midway point of the half, Jack Morton leapt like a salmon to meet a cross, only for his leader to loop just over Thompson's bar but, four minutes later, the home side finally broke the deadlock. Another ball beyond the Oakley back-line caused some confusion between Thompson, who had rushed to the edge of his box, and the defence. The half-clearance reached Harrison Furlong some 25 yards out. The Witney number 8 returned it first time, bypassing both stranded goalkeeper and covering defenders. 1-0. A lovely controlled strike.
Witney smelled blood and it looked like they would go on to establish a big lead now. Two minutes after the goal, left-back William Smaldon sent a curling effort in from the left flank, over Thompson and looking destined for the top corner, only for the ball to come back off the bar. Then the woodwork came to United rescue again just past the half-hour mark when Morton's cross found Furlong who met it with a powerful header, only for the ball to, once again, smash off the bar.
Oakley were wobbling, but hanging on and, to give them credit, they did stem the flow somewhat after those two close shaves. Furling came close again just before the break, when another long ball saw him beat Thompson only for his lobbed effort to clear the bar.

HT Witney Town 1 Oakley United 0. Witney controlled the half but only managed to find the net once. They could, and probably should, have been two or three to the good. Oakley must be quite happy to go into the break still very much in the game.

​Sure enough, with only three minutes of the second half gone, Witney were made to play for their missed chances.  Oakley's Tom Beckett picked the ball up on the halfway line and drove towards the right-hand side of the home penalty area. With defenders backing off him, Beckett went for goal, sending a low drive past Bennington's right hand into the bottom corner. 1-1
The Witney response to the equaliser was almost immediate, but Thompson was equal to Furlong's effort, making another good stop. That looked to have been crucial when, two minutes later, Oakley were awarded a penalty after Harry Gardner was clipped in the box. No real complaints from the home side as Daniel Pounds smashed the ball past Bennington from the spot. 1-2 with just seven minutes of the second period gone. Some turnaround from Oakley.
In response, Witney made a few changes as Oakley put players behind the ball in defence of their lead. There was, however, a long way to go. Could they hand on for over 30 minutes? 
Witney continued to push for a goal but, aside from a couple of freekicks, Jack Robinson's pushed away by Thompson and Ryan Oliver's effort flashing narrowly wide, the home side were struggling to get back into the game.
However, Oakley were dropping deeper and deeper. Since the second goal they had posed no further threat to Bennington's goal to the point where, at one point, the home keeper was complaining of being cold.

​Their plan looked very much as if it was going to pay dividends as we entered time added on. Even more so when, a minute in to added time, the home side engineered an opportunity for Andrew Gunn, but the centre-half could only stab his volley wide of the mark. Then, in the 94th minute, more drama as Rob Jones pointed to the spot for a foul in the area. This time there was some argument from the defence but, as the incident happened at the far end from my position, I couldn't say for sure if the complaints were justified. Whatever the case, the decision stood. Furlong stepped up and drilled the ball down the middle to level it up. 2-2.
There was barely time to restart the game before the final whistle went. A hard-earned point for both teams.

FT Witney Town 2 Oakley United 2. Witney will feel they did enough to win this one, but they didn't take their chances when they came and Oakley, who had much less possession, took the two big opportunities they had. Trying to defend their lead for most of the second half, almost paid off before the very late penalty.
With all other games called off, Witney's lead is now seven points at the top. However, they have now played three more than Shipston. Oakley stay in sixth, level on points with Yarnton Reserves
Next up for The Blanketmen is a trip to seventh placed Hanwell United who they beat 2-1 at home back in September. Oakley welcome Sporting Headington Academicals to Oxford Road, who are one point and two places above them. eh first meeting of the teams this season.

Witney Town: Bennington, Karaj, Smaldon, Clark, Gunn, Walker, Oliver(c), Furlong, Holloway, Morton, Griffin. Subs: Shayler, Preston-Carney, Robinson, Dix, Morgan-Allen
Oakley United: Thompson, Gardner, Walsh, Bailey, Atkinson, Bosher(c), Beckett, Dandridge, Falcus, Pounds, Knight. Subs: Kernan, Woodcock, Sargent, Mannerings, Lunn 

Ground Number: Re-visit
Att: 120+
Entrance: N/A
Programme: N/A