We came into the game on the back of consecutive defeats for the first time in a long while, and there could hardly have been a tougher test waiting for us. Bottesford arrived at Cannon Park having won every game they had played so far this season, establishing themselves as one of the early pace-setters in the division.
There were several changes from the side that had featured in midweek, with new signings Alans Voskresenskis and Jamie Tomlinson both handed their first starts in black and white.
From the opening whistle, it was immediately apparent that this was a very different performance from the one we had produced just a few days earlier. The energy, intensity and hunger were there from the start as we went toe-to-toe with an in-form Bottesford side. Zander Duhameau was finding plenty of space down the left-hand side and created our first real opening after eight minutes. He drove forward before getting his effort away, forcing the Bottesford goalkeeper into a strong save.
Matt Tootle then came agonisingly close to opening the scoring from a free kick in a wide position. His effort caught the goalkeeper by surprise at the near post and had to be palmed around the upright. As the first half progressed, Bottesford began to grow into the contest and showed exactly why they had made such an impressive start to the campaign.
The visitors created a number of good opportunities before the break, striking the post on one occasion and twice being denied by the ever-reliable Harvey Woodward, who produced two important saves to keep the scores level. We almost found the breakthrough ourselves just before the half-time whistle. Ben Ashall delivered a dangerous ball into the area which was diverted goalwards by a Bottesford defender. For a moment it looked destined to cross the line, only for another visiting player to get back and clear the danger at the final moment.
It brought an end to an excellent opening 45 minutes. Two well-organised sides playing at a high level, both creating chances but neither able to find the finishing touch. The pattern continued after the restart.
Both teams remained disciplined without the ball and attacks were regularly met by strong defending at the other end. As the clock moved towards the final stages, it increasingly felt like one of those games that would finish goalless. Jacob Carter was introduced from the bench and almost made an immediate impact. Just minutes after coming on, he produced a brilliant roulette spin to beat his man before firing towards goal. His effort took a deflection and went behind for a corner.
With only a few minutes remaining, however, came the decisive moment. On 88 minutes the ball bounced around inside our penalty area before eventually falling to Jaime Ture. The Bottesford man reacted quickly, spinning onto the loose ball and firing powerfully into the roof of the net. There was little Harvey could do about it. It was a painful way for the game to be decided after the work the lads had put in throughout the afternoon.
Ultimately it goes down as another defeat, but there were plenty of positives to take from the performance. Against a Bottesford side who have started the season in outstanding form, we competed from the first minute to the last and can count ourselves unfortunate not to have taken at least a point from the game.
The result hurts, but the performance represented a definite step forward. There is no midweek fixture for the lads this time around, so we have to wait until Saturday for the opportunity to put things right.
See you at Albion on Saturday, Badgers.
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