2005/06 season match No.23
FA Trophy, 1st round proper
Saturday, December 17 th, 2005
Alfreton Town 1, Histon 1
Match report by Gordon Foster (Mansfield CHAD). Pics by Phil Lucic.

Mick Godber, hidden by the Histon goalkeeper, puts the Reds in front.

ALFRETON were left with the prospect of an unwanted long trip to Cambridgeshire on the Wednesday evening before Christmas, after giant centre-back Colin Vowden headed Histon’s equaliser 10 minutes from time.
Mick Godber had fired the Reds into a 69th-minute lead which had looked enough to carry them through into the next round.
But Histon, whose last minute home defeat by Nuneaton four days earlier had cost them a lucrative FA Cup third round tie against Premiership side Middlesbrough, were in no mood to be dumped out of their second FA knockout competition to Conference North opposition in a week.
A draw was a fair result, and defeat for either side would have been a touch harsh. But Alfreton must be frustrated at being unable to shake off their ‘draw specialists’ tag.
Manager Gary Mills said: "I’m disappointed again not to have won after being one up, and now we have to go there for a replay on Wednesday.
 "It was a dour game. We worked hard, but when you go a goal up in a cup tie you need to kill it off.
 "We played a team that thrives on corners and free-kicks and their equaliser came from a needless free-kick.
 "We must keep believing in ourselves, but it is hard when we keep drawing.
 "However, we have now lost only twice in the last 17 games and out of all those games I felt that, apart from the 1-0 defeat at Droylsden, we could have got something."
The two sides effectively cancelled each other out in a first half of few opportunities at either end. But there were some noteworthy individual performances on both sides.
Chris Bettney again took man of the match for some sparkling runs which left the giant Histon back line chasing shadows, but Emeka Nwadike was also in the frame for some sterling work in midfield.
The Conference South visitors might have thought they had taken the lead in the 16th minute when Shaun Bodkin pulled off a first rate stop, throwing himself to his right to turn Jamie Barker’s close range header around the post, after a flowing crossfield move enabled Matt Haniver to supply a pinpoint centre.
Four minutes later Chris White whistled a 25-yard free kick inches wide.
Bodkin had to produce a diving near post save to deny Robbie Nightingale from a free kick by Histon’s most influential player, midfielder Adrian Cambridge in the 34th minute.
However, the Reds might have taken the lead as the game entered first half stoppage time. Bettney fed the ball forward on the right for Nwadike, who chipped delightfully over advancing keeper Lance Key towards the well-placed Peter Duffield, but Roscoe Hipperson managed a crucial interception at the expense of a fruitless corner.
Mark Turner made a couple of important interceptions as the second half got under way with Histon attacking, but three minutes in he slipped as he lost out to Barker. Bodkin was unable to hold the ball at the striker’s feet, but somehow Turner recovered and blocked as Barker shot towards a gaping goal.
Hipperson twice came to Histon’s rescue, first charging in at the last moment to concede a corner as Dave Robinson was set to sweep home Bettney’s low near post cross, and then doing equally well to deny Duffield a shot at goal after Godber and Bettney had engineered a possible opening.
Lee Featherstone cleared off the line in the 68th minute after Bodkin’s punch clear from a corner was headed goalwards by Haniver, but a minute later Alfreton made the breakthrough.
The Histon defence stood appealing in vain for offside as Nwadike looped a header over them to Godber, who clinically shot the Reds into the lead.
Within two minutes Key made a brilliant tip over his bar from Godber’s tight angle cross shot.
But 10 minutes from time Cambridge floated a free kick over from the left touchline into the Alfreton area, and Vowden powered a bullet header to earn the Cambridgeshire village side a replay.
ALFRETON: Bodkin, Powell, Featherstone, Clarke, Turner, Robinson, Bettney, Nwadike, Godber (Ross 82), Duffield (Fisher 75), White (Stevenson 67). Subs not used: Mills, Smith.
HISTON: Key, Jackman, Okay (Coulson 80), Hipperson, Vowden, Cambridge, Haniver (Gutzmore 80), Andrews (Goddard 90), Barker, Nightingale, Wright-Percival. Subs not used: Farrington, Kennedy.
REFEREE: Gary Brittain of Beckingham, Doncaster.
ATTENDANCE: 238.
SCORERS: Alfreton – Godber 69. Histon – Vowden 80.
CAUTION: Alfreton – Robinson 34 (late challenge on Barker).
MAN OF THE MATCH: Chris Bettney.