Match photos at:  https://flic.kr/s/aHsmg3Mms5

Among all the snow and postponed games, a football game of the very highest quality took place at Mill Meadow between two sides both vying for a promotion spot and showing they would both have the quality to compete at the higher level.

With Saints sitting in sixth place and their visitors in third just three points ahead, this was a game neither side could afford to lose. So the drama of the opening minutes was unexpected. A slide rule pass from Jake Cass out to Victor Osobu after just four minutes set Osobu on a run into goal and his angled shot could only be pushed out by keeper Oualah into the path of Louis Stead and the returning Saints stroked the ball into the net. For the late arrivals out of the warmth of the clubhouse, their tardiness was further punished as, just a minute later, Saints paid the price for not resetting properly for the restart and Toby Little was given room to cross from the left and Manny Duku rose to power home a header and instantly cancel out Saints' lead.

Mark Goodman had to clear off the line after Carl Dennison had spilled a free kick as Hayes sought to secure an advantage while, at the other end, Oualah was lucky to see only yellow as he cleaned out Jake Cass in challenging for a long clearance.

As the game settled, so the defences began to hold sway and it became a fascinating tussle as the two well matched sides sought for a breakthrough.

Into the second half, and Hayes thought they had grabbed the lead but were frustrated to see an early flag raised for offside to rule it out. Their ire was exacerbated when Jake Cass was sent crashing  by Tom Smith for a stonewall penalty. Victor Osobu stepped up for the spot kick but was horrified to see his kick sail high and wide.

Neither side looked like making a crucial mistake and the final scoreline would have satisfied both sides in the big picture of the promotion chase but Saints, having just edged the later stages, were left with a sense of what might have been.

Saints:  Carl Dennison, Mark Goodman, Ryan Haugh, George Fenton, Alan Hedley, Frankie Jones (Adam Kirby 78), Max Holland (Brian Haule 67), Alex Paine, Jake Cass, Louis Stead, Victor Osobu.

Attendance.  135     Star Player.  Louis Stead