Skegness Town 0-0 Ashby Ivanhoe
Saturday 3rd October
The MKM Stadium

Skegness Town were forced to settle for a point on Saturday afternoon as they played out an entertaining 0-0 draw with Ashby Ivanhoe at the MKM Stadium.

It was a game in which both sides looked capable of finding a winning goal, but ultimately neither could produce the decisive finish in what was a competitive and entertaining goalless draw.

Stronger squad for The Lilywhites

The Lilywhites looked much closer to a full-strength side, with the only notable absentee being Jordan Nuttel, who continues to recover from an ongoing injury.

There was also a welcome return to the squad for experienced defender Conor Marshall, who was fit enough to take his place amongst the substitutes.

Manager Gary King made two changes to the starting XI, with Kier Wressell returning in place of Noah Simmons, while Jamie Potts came back into the side in place of Liam Adams.

Even contest

From the opening stages, it was clear that this was going to be an end-to-end encounter.

Both teams carried a threat going forward, while Skegness enjoyed plenty of possession, particularly in midfield. Matt Clarke and McCauley Parker worked tirelessly in the centre of the pitch, helping The Lilywhites dictate the tempo and keep the ball moving.

Jamie Potts was also outstanding throughout, producing a man-of-the-match performance. Operating from the right but regularly drifting inside to support the midfield, Potts was a constant threat and caused Ashby problems both with his movement and his willingness to drive forward.

In the first half, Skegness created several promising opportunities, with much of their best attacking play coming from the wide areas.

On occasions, however, the final ball let The Lilywhites down. There were opportunities to deliver dangerous crosses into the Ashby penalty area, but too often the ball failed to beat the first defender, meaning Skegness didn't quite make the most of the promising positions they created.

At the other end, Ashby Ivanhoe possessed some physically strong forward players who could ordinarily cause plenty of problems. However, aside from one early opportunity when they broke through in a wide area, the Skegness defence remained steadfast and did an excellent job of keeping their attacking players at bay.

Neither goalkeeper was called upon to make a significant save during the opening 45 minutes, and the sides went into the interval level.

Lilywhites continue to push

The second half followed a similar pattern to the first.

Both sides continued to look capable of threatening, while Skegness continued to probe for the opening goal.

There was one moment of controversy when Ashby felt they should have been awarded a free kick after one of their attackers broke clear and was brought down just outside the penalty area.

The assistant referee appeared to signal for a free kick, but the referee waved play on.

It was a decision that certainly brought a sigh of relief from the Skegness camp, as the incident occurred outside the box and a red card could potentially have followed had the foul been given.

At the other end, The Lilywhites continued to search for a breakthrough, although as the game progressed it began to feel like it might be one of those frustrating afternoons where the ball simply wouldn't go in.

Dakin hits the bar

Skegness came agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock from a corner.

Lucas Dakin rose highest in a crowded penalty area and produced an excellent header which flew across goal and struck the crossbar.

It was arguably the best chance of the match and came within inches of giving The Lilywhites the lead.

There was still time for another opportunity late on, with Kyle Radford finding himself with a chance to steal all three points. However, his effort flew high and wide of the target.

The final whistle eventually brought an end to a thoroughly entertaining contest, with both sides having shown enough to suggest they could have taken all three points, but neither able to find the crucial finish.

A 0-0 draw was perhaps a fair reflection of an evenly matched afternoon, although Skegness can certainly take plenty of positives from their performance.

Thank you for your support

An excellent attendance of 191 spectators watched Saturday's encounter, and everyone at Skegness Town FC would like to thank each and every person who came through the gates to support the team.

Your support is vital to the club, and it will be needed more than ever next weekend.

The Lilywhites return to the MKM Stadium to welcome high-flying Clay Cross, in a game where Skegness will be looking to turn another encouraging performance into three valuable points.

We need you behind us.

Up the Lilywhites!