Saturday 15 October 2005 - Creasy Park - kick off 3.00pm

FA Trophy 1st Qualifying Round

half-time: 0-0

result: D2-2

attendance: 122

team:	Evans, Clarke (Ford 70), Power, Coupe, G Jones, Harris, Bird, Holloway (c), Walsh, Partridge, Sandell. subs not used: S Jones, York, Shackle, Holland.
man of the match:	Adie Harris
scorers:	Bird (86), Walsh (90)
bookings:	Walsh (71)
officials:	S Long (Essex), C Hicks (Surrey), C Phillips (Surrey)

league position: n/a

form: LWWLWD

next match: Dunstable (H)

Report taken from

by Richard Gadsby

A Rollercoaster final five minutes saw Bath City cling on to their FA Trophy ambitions as they twice battled back from a goal down in the dying stages against a spirited Dunstable. The team was the same, but the game was a world away from City's midweek mauling of Cirencester and, with the possible exceptions of Adie Harris and Phil Walsh, few visiting players could have come away from Creasey Park feeling they gave it their all. Credit to City for fighting to the end but they should really have made sure of this tie by half-time with Scott Partridge guilty of missing three clear chances with just the keeper to beat.

His first effort came in the opening minute when he beat his marker for pace down the right and saw a good low shot to the keeper's left palmed away to safety. Seven minutes later Partridge fired wide after running on to a long ball over the top that caught the Dunstable defence flatfooted. And on 23 minutes he missed the best of the bunch. A clearance from an Andy Sandell corner fell to Harris just outside the area and the midfielder chipped a delicate ball back into the six-yard box. With the defence pushing up it fell straight to Partridge and everyone, including the City striker, momentarily froze in anticipation of the linesman's flag. It never came and, with almost all the goal begging, Partridge fired a weak shot straight at the diving Paul Taylor. City's inability to finish gave Dunstable the belief they could compete and Paul Evans was forced to tip over the bar from Ben L'Honore's speculative 35-yard lob for the last real effort of the half.

It should have served as a wake-up call for a Bath side who lacked the urgency and passion of their Southern League Division 1 West opponents. Unfortunately, it didn't and ten minutes after the break lacklustre City were made to pay. A Tom Freeman shot was charged down by Gethin Jones on the edge of the box and the ball bounced kindly for Ben Smith who volleyed a sweet first-time shot into the top left-hand corner. Dunstable defended deeper as City began to press but the home side still looked a match for their Southern Premier League opponents and it was hard to see where a Bath equaliser would come from. The usually dangerous Sandell was, for once, kept quiet by right-back Craig Stallard whilst Tony Bird had been a virtual spectator for 85 minutes on the right before belatedly charging to City's rescue - twice. He grabbed the first equaliser with a fine ten-yard strike to the keeper's right with four minutes to go but, just when it looked like City had snatched a replay, the defence dozed off and Dunstable retook the lead with a near post header from Ryan Quinn. More excitement was to come and deep into injury-time, a Graeme Power cross looked to have gone out after a touch from the keeper but was, dubiously, hooked back into the box by Bird for Walsh to head home from a yard out. It was a grandstand finish to an otherwise drab game, with City just about earning their replay at Twerton Park tomorrow night.