Aylesbury United made the Tuesday night trip to Rugby on an unusually cold August evening, looking to score potentially their first points away from Buckingham Road of 2004/05.
Paul Curtis kept faith with the squad which had battled to a 1-0 win over Solihull Borough three days earlier.
Rugby started much the stronger, as their 3-5-2 system gave them the upper hand in midfield, closing Aylesbury out easily and playing some nice football too. Jack Rashid was called into early emergency action, tipping over a fierce effort from Adam Hart following some hesitant defending from the Ducks backline.
The away side escaped unscathed two long-range efforts, the first well wide after a run by the tricky Justin Marsden, the second a distance effort easily held by Rashid from Rory Squire.
Controversy soon followed, as a high-ball into Rugby's penalty area caused chaos, and on leaving his goal Rugby keeper Dean Thomas appeared to punch the ball away when outside his area. A stormy protest ensued from the Aylesbury players and fans, but both referee and linesman were uninterested.
The claim seemed to spur the Ducks on, as they ended the first half in the ascendancy. A quite superb left-footed cross from Paul Edgeworth brought about Aylesbury best chance of the half, as Neil Champelovier's well-timed arrival resulted in a well-placed header, which was just as well saved by Thomas.
Before the referee blew for half-time, Dean Cracknell hit a low effort wide, and Rugby had a shot well off-target at the other end. Both sides had chances in the first period, but nobody could argue against 0-0 being a fair reflection of an evenly contested 45 minutes.
Half-time: Rugby 0-0 Aylesbury
The second-half couldn't have started any better for Aylesbury. A free-kick underneath Rugby's impressive new stand was swung in by Jason Burnham. Leon Gutzmore, always a menace in the penalty area, flicked the ball goalwards at the near-post, and Matt Hayward was on hand to slide the ball into the net for his second goal in as many games. 1-0 Aylesbury
Being the home side, it was always expected that Rugby would fight back strongly, and so it proved, as they dug deep and levelled nine minutes later. A mazy run by Steve Evans brought about a shot which took a huge deflection off Kai Ridley and left Rashid a mere spectator. 1-1
Rugby wanted more though, and turned up the heat on their Buckinghamshire opponents. Under strong pressure Aylesbury defence came out with great credit, as they survived a number of attacks by the home side. Squire hit another fizzing effort wide, and Robbie Beard had a low shot easily held by Rashid.
After their spell on the defensive, Aylesbury started to play once more, and as the second half went on they grew in stature once again. The game was wide open though, with both sides having chances to seal a win. Two nice moves from Aylesbury, one involving Gutzmore and one involving Champelovier, weren't rewarded with a final effort on goal.
After another effort off-target from Beard, Rugby had an early contender for 'Miss of the Season' A free-kick was headed agains the crossbar, and with Rashid out of position and the goal wide open it seemed certain that the follow-up could only result in a goal. Somehow though, the ball was mis-hit and found the grateful arms of Rashid.
Substitute Stuart Smeathers set off on a great run soon after, but his shot didn't match the quality of the preceeding play. Meshach Cole replaced Paul Edgeworth fifteen minutes from time, and his fresh legs and tricky running up front proved a useful switch.
As the minutes passed by, it was Aylesbury on the offensive. A Paul Lamb free-kick was headed clear only as far as Daniel Mead, but his follow-up effort was easily held by Thomas. Cracknell then saw a header from a corner comfortably held.
Then, in the 86th minute, Aylesbury nicked the match and the three-points. If Rugby were fortunate with their deflected goal, then Aylesbury were downright lucky! A dangerous low-cross from Daniel Mead was always going to cause problems, and Rugby's Andy Commander turned the ball into his own-net. 2-1 Aylesbury
Rugby had nothing left to throw forward, and the smash-and-grab was complete. A deserved win for Paul Curtis' side, although that could be said for both sides as both had dominant spells during the game, but it was Aylesbury who made their chances count in the end.
