It was a visit from South Wales side Penybont to Maes Tegid this past weekend, as both teams played out the reverse fixture from the opening weekend of the season, with the Bont coming out on top on that occasion.
The Lakesiders needed to fight back from 1-0 down, after Kostya Georgievsky opened the scoring in the first half after a mistake from Alex Ramsay, although with a much better second half, the Town managed to find an equaliser after a mistake from Alex Pennock in the Bont goal, as he spilled a long ball forward from Ramsay, with Adam Roscrow on his tail and the TNS loanee managed to hit the ball goalwards with Luke Wall needing to provide the finishing touch.
Georgievsky Capitalises
A rather slow start to the match saw the opening goal come inside the first 10 minutes, as a long ball up the pitch from Alex Pennock found the foot of Kostya Georgievsky with Alex Ramsay in no-mans-land, giving the Bont number seven an easy tap-in as he took the ball past Ramsay and rolled the ball into an empty net.
It took a while for the Town to grow into the match, as our first chance to equalise came through George Newell, who managed to turn inside the box but narrowly missed the target with his shot,
On The Offensive!
The Town went pushing hard for the equaliser as the first half entered its final 10 minutes, as George Newell and Adam Roscrow looked to combine to create the leveller, however Roscrow's attempt on goal from Newell's cross into the box was swept over the bar.
The Captain Chris Venables then came close with a shot from range, but Pennock got down well to his right as he pushed the ball away from danger.
As the first half approached its culmination, Nathan Peate came so close to grabbing the equaliser as leaped highest from a corner, but his powerful header was again saved by Pennock who pushed the header away from danger, and kept the score a 1-0 going into the interval.
The Equaliser
The Lakesiders looked hungry as we began the second half, with pressure being applied on the visiting defence instantly. The pressure did pay off however, as Alex Pennock made a mistake of his own from a long ball up-field by Alex Ramsay, with the visiting goalkeeper spilling the ball into the path of Adam Roscrow, who sent the ball towards goal, although Luke Wall rushed in to ensure the ball crossed the line with two Penybont defenders attempting to stop the inevitable equaliser. 1-1!
Oh So Close!
Following the equaliser, the Town looked eager to take the lead as chances came thick and fast, with Chris Venables coming close with a header as he met a cross from the right hand side, but couldn't direct his header underneath the crossbar.
Luke Wall then came agonisingly close to his second, as he found himself with the ball infront of the Bont goal with just the keeper to beat, but rushed to get his shot away as he saw his effort sail over the bar, in a chance that really should have been taken by our number eight.
The Lakesiders now look to Friday 4th of November, as we welcome Aberystwyth Town to Maes Tegid for some Friday Night Football on the eve of Bonfire Night, with plenty of sparks to be expected! Kick off is scheduled for 7:45pm, do not miss it!
Line-Ups:
Bala Town - Alex Ramsay, Naim Arsan, Nathan Peate, Dave Edwards, Oliver Southern, Kieran Smith, Adam Roscrow, George Newell, Paul Rutherford, Luke Wall, Chris Venables
Penybont - Alex Pennock, Mark Little, Kane Owen, Mael Davies, Kostya Georgievsky, Nathan Wood, Josh Yorwerth, Billy Borge, Rhys Kavanagh, Ryan Reynolds, Shaun MacDonald
Goals:
Bala Town - Luke Wall (60)
Penybont - Kostya Georgievsky (10)
Substitutes:
Bala Town - Ollie Shannon > Oliver Southern (79)
Penybont - Kai Whitmore > Kane Owen (5), Keyon Reffell > Rhys Kavanagh (57), Ashley Evans > Ryan Reynolds (61)
Yellow Cards:
Bala Town - Nathan Peate (90+2)
Penybont - Rhys Kavanagh (40)