FC Halifax Town came back to draw 1-1 at home to Harrogate Town on New Year’s Day.
A sixth minute goal from George Thomson and a 90th minute equaliser from Jonathan Edwards meant the two Yorkshire sides shared the points. A poor first half from Halifax saw the home side trail but a good second half meant the spoils were shared.
A poor start from the Shaymen saw Harrogate create an early chance but Johnson did well to get down and tip it wide. It took only six minutes for Harrogate to take the lead as Mark Beck switched the play and found George Thomson. Thomson looked to cross the ball into the box but instead found the back of the net to make it 1-0.
The first booking of the night fell for Niall Maher. Jack Emmett had stayed down after an earlier challenge and dissent from Maher saw him pick up a yellow card.
Few chances were then created for the remainder of the first half as Town struggled to hold onto possession. Again, Harrogate came out quickly in the second half. With several corners in the first ten minutes but they failed to take those chances.
Halifax’s best chance of the opening 15 minutes fell to Ben Tomlinson who received the ball on the edge of the box. He had the option of James Ferry on the overlap but chose to go alone. His shot from distance was blocked by the first man and James Belshaw calmly picked up the ball.
Going into the second half, a much-needed improvement would be needed if Town were to get anything from the game. A few early chances for both teams kept the score line 1-0.
The second yellow card of the game fell to Josh Falkingham. The referee wasn’t happy with something Falkingham said and was quick to brandish the yellow card.
Despite what appeared to be a foul in the box, Matty Kosylo won a free kick. With Ryan Sellers and Kosylo standing over it, the former stepped up and fired a shot into the side netting with many Halifax fans celebrating what they thought to be the equaliser.
Both sides struggled to create any clear chances as Harrogate looked content to keep the one goal advantage. After 70 minutes, Town looked to create more chances. This time Maher had an effort from the edge of the box, but it went narrowly wide of the post.
Moments after Jonathan Edwards was brought on for Dayle Southwell he looked to score. Tomlinson swung in a free kick, but Edwards’ header was just wide of the mark. Another corner for Halifax was just about cleared away after headers from Maher and Clarke kept it alive.
As the game neared its conclusion, it was substitute Edwards who found the net. A Tomlinson corner was headed into the air by Falkingham, after some head tennis, it fell to the feat of Edwards who tapped it home to give the Shaymen a point.
The result sees the Shaymen remain 16th in the Vanarama National League. Town stay at home as they look to face Braintree Town on Saturday. The reverse fixture saw the Shaymen come out 2-0 winners back in August.
My man of the match: Jacob Hanson
FC Halifax Town: 1 Sam Johnson, 3 Ryan Sellers, 4 Nathan Clarke, 5 Matty Brown (c), 7 Matty Kosylo, 9 Dayle Southwell (10 Jonathan Edwards 78) 14 Ben Tomlinson, 19 Jordan Preston, 25 James Ferry, 31 Niall Maher, 40 Jacob Hanson
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