The Angels quest for a much-needed win proved fruitless on a cold and drizzly evening at Longmead. A laboured and often tense performance was only good enough to share the points with our visitors from the New Forest, themselves chasing a playoff berth.

With Lew Watts fit to start but Ray Powell suspended in addition to Jay May, Dobla shifted the starting XI around from Saturday's team .v. Walton. John Beales resumed at right back, with Drew Watkins moving into midfield and Steve Sodje up front alongside Jon Main. Dobla himself made way for Danny Ward to make his home debut in the middle of the park.

The first half had little to warm the hearts of a sparse crowd. Danny Gibbons shot wide for Bash early on, then Beales made a crucial block on Richard Gillespie's effort before the visitors snatched the lead on 23 minutes. Gillespie latched onto a ball down the inside left channel, cut in and struck a low left-foot shot which beat JJ at the near post. The Angels finally forced Bash 'keeper David Elm into action just before the break when Sodje made something out of nothing down the right and fed Fraser Logan, whose left foot drive was gathered by Elm at the second attempt.

Half-Time saw the Angels reshuffle positions again. With Steve Aris failing to reappear, Beales moved to central defence, Watkins to right back and Adam O'Neil came on to fill an attacking midfield role.

Tonbridge started with more purpose and quickly had the visitors on the back foot. O'Neil fed Sodje who was eventually crowded out inside the box. JJ was booked for taking out Steele Saunders on a Bash break, but the Angels were soon level. Main turned inside the box and fired across a hard, low cross which Bash couldn't clear, Logan firing gleefully past Elm from ten yards.

The Angels continued to have the better of it, but their play gradually assumed an air of desperation the longer it stayed level. Wade Falana replaced a tiring Main with half an hour left and won a number of aerial challenges, all to no avail. Sodje's control let him down when Logan found him in a good position on the edge of the box, and Bash were happy to scramble the ball for a corner when O'Neil slid in after Elm couldn't hold Logan's drive.

The visitor's more composed play always threatened to pay dividends, and nearly did so with ten minutes left when Dave Wakefield's cross found Zeke Rink, who crashed his shot against the post from 15 yards - but a draw was a fair result on the night.

Report by: Tony Browne

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