Wingate & Finchley held to goalless draw by Margate
Wingate's Spencer McCall (left) - Credit: Archant
Wingate & Finchley were held to a goalless draw at home against Margate last night, which did nothing to ease their growing fears of relegation.
Having lost their two previous matches 7-0 to Lowestoft Town and 3-0 to AFC Hornchurch, the Blues needed a win on Tuesday night to ease away from the drop zone, but came up short in another tense, nervy 90 minutes.
The first half produced little of note until Margate stepped up the pressure just before half-time. Jefferson Louis, formerly of Hendon, flashed two shots off target while Matt Bodkin drilled an effort across the face of goal.
Moments into the second half, Margate’s Jack Sammoutis volleyed a clearance towards his own goal – and with his keeper stranded he was relieved to see his 30-yard mis-hit drop wide of the right post by a matter of inches.
Wingate had created precious little in front of goal, but improved after the break and Adam Bolle fed Spencer McCall, only for the keeper to charge down his effort.
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Bolle then fired a low shot at the keeper, while at the other end Margate’s Anthony Riviere had a shot blocked by Wingate shot-stopper Bobby Smith.
Wingate’s final chance of the match arrived in the closing stages, as Josh Kennett fed Leon Fisher, who could only drive his shot into the side netting.
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The result left Wingate six points above the relegation zone ahead of the midweek matches.
Wingate head coach Daniel Nielsen said: “I am pleased with the reaction of the squad after a difficult week.
“They worked their socks off for 90 minutes and earned that point.
“On the balance of play a draw was probably a fair result, although we had possibly the best two chances of the game.
“Margate are a very good side and I expect to see them challenging at the top of the league next season.
“The squad will need to carry that positive performance into Saturday’s game at Dulwich and work just as hard as they did here.”
George Purcell had previously scored twice while Tambeson Eyong added another as Wingate were beaten conclusively 3-0 by promotion-chasing AFC Hornchurch on Saturday.
The result might well have been different had Craig Davies not had an early goal ruled out for offside, before the Blues were outclassed in the second half.
Wingate face another tough test on Saturday when they travel to second-placed Dulwich Hamlet. Dulwich, however, are in a poor run of form, with one win from their last eight games.
