Buckland Athletic 3rds FC 2-2 Malborough & Hope Cove FC

The home side started the better and took the lead when their forward fired a shot across the area and into the corner of the net, giving Boro keeper Steve Avent no chance.

Malborough & Hope Cove responded well and created a number of good chances to equalise, Gary Burman missed the visitor’s best opportunity.

Heavy rain at the start of the second half made it hard for both defences to judge the ball’s bounce.

Boro started the second period brightly and equalised through Harry Dawson after a good team move.

Buckland hit back almost immediately and took a 2-1 lead after Boro failed to clear from a corner.

With ten minutes left on the clock, manager Mike Stone took a gamble by putting on Wayne Kovacic for Andy Scott and playing with three up front. It paid off when Kovacic chased a ball back to the Buckland keeper, and when the latter missed his kick, the Boro substitute was on hand to slot the ball into an empty net.

This result leaves Boro in 9th position in the league table with nine points from nine games.

Their first game back after Christmas is the return fixture at Malborough on Saturday January 8.