Missing five regular starters due to suspension and injury, Cray Wanderers recent dip in form continued with a frustrating draw against third bottom East Grinstead Town whose performance deserved at least a point.
The game got off to an open start with East Grinstead going close through Alex Gaggins who fired over and Will Hoare who shot wide, while Dean Carpenter put a long range effort over at the other end. Cray struggled to find their usual fluency and range of passing and nearly gifted the visitors a goal when keeper Nick Blue slipped when trying to clear a back pass, but Joe Vines was on hand to clear the ball off the line.
East Grinstead pressed Cray and stopped them from passing the ball out from the back, forcing errors and they went close again when Hoare pounced on a Lew Dawson slip, but fired wired from the edge of the box.
The Wands slowly started to improve as the half went on, Michael Power and Michael Freiter went close while Ben Mundele and Junior Dadson began to cause a real attacking threat down the right. Freiter was just off target with a free kick after a foul on Power, before Charles Ferguson was denied by Blue at the other end.
Ironically for all of The Wands passing football, their goal came from route one when a long ball up field saw Power fight off the challenge of Sam Rolph before drilling the ball low past Dan Smith from twenty yards into the corner of the net. Brandon Scott and Power went close going into the break with balls across the goal mouth, but The Wasps held out for half time.
The second half saw the visitors come out looking far more positive and they were level on 48minutes when their two full backs combined. Karn Miller-Neave raced down the right and crossed for Oliver Boulding to score on the volley from six yards out at the far post. Charlie Postance nearly put East Grinstead in front soon after, but his goal bound shot was save by Blue’s feet.
The Wands got going again and started to move the ball round quicker and with more purpose, but they failed to create any real chances until the final quarter of the game. Power went close, as did Mat Parsons and Dawson had a shot deflected over, with Charlie MacDonald turning Vines’ knock down wide from the resulting corner.
The Wasps also had chances though with Blue punching a Rolph header out from under the bar and also saving from Steve Sargent. In a very open finish to the game Dawson and Scott put chances wide of the mark for Cray, but in the end they just couldn’t find their way through the East Grinstead defence for a second time and The Wasps earned their point.
Cray remain in second place and now travel to Ramsgate next Saturday looking to get their promotion challenge back into gear.
Cray: Blue, Mundele, Parsons, Leader, Vines, Dawson, Freiter (Dent 73), Carpenter, Scott, Dadson (Lawrence 86), Power (MacDonald 79).
Subs not Used: Henry, Fujimade.
EGTFC: Smith, Boulding, Miller-Neave, Wilson, Thompson, Rolph, Gaggins (Postance 23), Sargent, Elliott, Hoare, Ferguson.
Subs Not Used: Bray, Hutchinson, Meeres, Springett.
Goals: Cray – Power 39mins. EGTFC – Boudling 48mins
Att: 141
HT 1-0 FT 1-1
Ref: Mr I Searle