The select group of Aylesbury fans who had made the six-hour round trip to Tiverton Town were rewarded with a seven-goal thriller, in a rollercoaster ride of a match unlikely to be bettered this season.
Unfortunately the result went against the Ducks, who had the chance to go joint top of the league had they won on the night. Despite scoring three on the road for the second successive game, it was Tivvy who were victorious. Jamie Mudge completing his hat-trick in the 93rd minute condemned Aylesbury to their second League defeat of 2005.
Danny Nicholls kept faith with the side who had so convincingly won at Gloucester on Saturday, but it was the home side who began on top. Jack Rashid made two good saves early on, the first after just 30 seconds, tipping the ball wide high to his left. The second was a brilliant plunging low save, diving onto the hard ground of Tiverton's pitch.
Having sustained the early pressure, Aylesbury began to knock the ball about themselves, as far as possible given the pitches condition. Roberts flashed a shot across goal, before the scoring was opened by Dean Cracknell, playing his last match for the club. Roberts' dribble took him inside the penalty area, and his shot looped up and was nodded in by Cracknell, sending Mark Ovendale the wrong way. 1-0 Aylesbury
Tiverton were still seeing plenty of the ball, and desperate challenges from Andrew Hodges and Liam Folds resulted in two-thirds of the Aylesbury defence on a yellow card.
Kevin Wills fired a fierce effort wide, before the home side equalised on the half-hour mark. Kurt Nogan managed to get ahead of his man, and easily nod home a corner-kick from the right. 1-1
Aylesbury could have been behind at half-time, as the best move of the half saw Tiverton play the ball around well, with Paul Buckle stealing in to fire over the bar.
Half-time: Tiverton 1-1 Aylesbury
Tiverton had the first chance of the second half, as a run and shot from Jamie Mudge was blocked, with the rebound being hit wide by Mudge.
Controversy was added to the mix five minutes into the second half, as Aylesbury were handed the chance to restore their lead from the penalty spot. Excellent link up between Gutzmore and Roberts put the latter clean through, but he was brought down en-route to goal. The referee initially gave nothing, but after consulting his linesman a spot-kick was awarded - which was easily converted by Cracknell for his second of the night. 2-1 Aylesbury
Worryling Drew Roberts was carried off having sustained an injury in the penalty foul, and later left the ground on crutches. Colin Baker was his replacement.
Tiverton picked up the pace again though, and turned their anger at the penalty award to good use. The Jamie Mudge show rolled into town, with the striker netting twice in the space of 60 seconds. The first was fired home after two previous attempts were scrambled clear, the second was a calm finish having broken free of the defence. 3-2 Tiverton
Both sides had a couple of weak efforts, as a Jaggard shot trickled through to Ovendale for United, and a shot was fired wide at the other end for Tiverton. Cracknell then lined up his hat-trick, but couldn't curl his shot enough, and the ball went wide.
Aylesbury did find another goal with just over fifteen minutes remaining. Matt Hayward's thumping half-volley was only partly cleared, and as the ball dropped to Colin Baker he lashed it early. His volley had viscious dip on it, dropping over the head of Ovendale and in - a remarkable finish. 3-3
The Ducks continued their impressive ascendancy in the game, and could easily have snatched a winner in the closing stages. Daniel Mead had a shot deflected wide, and Liam Folds had an overhead kick goal denied for offside.
It was Paul Edgeworth who so nearly stole the show though, as captain Nathan Rudge and goalkeeper Ovendale had a comical misunderstanding, as both left it for one another, allowing Edgeworth to nip in and smack the ball against the post from a tight angle.
It was to be Tiverton's night though, and who else by Mudge to nick the three points for the home side. Rounding off his hat-trick, and scoring his 27th goal of the season, he broke Aylesbury hearts by firing home the winner deep into stoppage time. 4-3 Aylesbury
The disappointment was etched across the face of every player and staff member trudging off the pitch at the final whistle. A true test of character will be how the team respond to the visit of Rugby United on Saturday.
