Coventry Sphinx 1-1 Boldmere St Michaels
Stuart Guest
Coventry Sphinx bounced back from a goal behind to secure a third consecutive 1-1 draw in the Pitching In Northern Premier League Midlands Division.
After taking a point from each of the last two against Corby Town and Rugby Town, Sphinx needed a penalty to do the same against Boldmere St Michaels at the Sphinx Industrial Supplies Arena.
Shay Willock scored from the spot with a little over ten minutes remaining, his third goal in three consecutive appearances for the Sphinx. He came off the bench in the second half after his delayed arrival caused a late change to the starting line-up, holding his nerve from twelve yards to draw his team level.
Alex Lock had moved upfield to deputise for Willock, with Andre Williams, Stan Dube and Kyle Carey in support. Callum Ballinger joined captain Callum Woodward in midfield, while Ryley Nicholson, Louis Guest, Pat Zito and Finlay Shorrock played as a back four in front of goalkeeper Charlie Woods.
The match took a while to get going but Sphinx started to get a foot on the ball with ten minutes played. The Mikes had the first shot on target when Theo Rowe’s whipped effort from 25 yards forced Woods to tip over.
Sphinx soon pressed the accelerator and moved the ball well in the 14th minute, culminating in a driving run and curling shot from Shorrock. Jonathan Brown in the Boldmere goal was able to watch the ball swing safely beyond his post.
A lack of shape in the game was exacerbated by the wind but the visitors drew another good save from Woods, this time with his feet, in the middle of the first half.
Joint Sphinx managers John Woodward and Shaun Thomas were forced into an early change yet again. Nicholson took a knock before half an hour had been played and was replaced by Joe Pursey on his return from suspension, further affecting the game plan as the teams slugged out a half that seldom threatened a goal.
Boldmere built up some pressure ten minutes before the break but Sphinx had the last couple of chances. Dube’s pass sent Carey in on the left and he cut inside only for Brown to parry his shot on goal and the teams went in level at half time.
Sphinx should have opened the scoring just 15 seconds into the second half. Clever play and a neat lay-off from Williams gave Carey a decent sight of goal but his shot went wide of the post and Brown went untroubled once more.
Despite starting the second half much more brightly than the first, Sphinx were caught out five minutes in and went behind. Oliver West cut in from the Boldmere left and his shot looked to be simple enough work for Woods before a big deflection took it past the Sphinx goalkeeper and high into the net.
Woods had to make a save a minute later with his team still rocking, and Woodward and Thomas quickly introduced Willock in search of an equaliser. He found one against Rugby and he did so again with help from another substitute.
Before that, Sphinx produced a combination between Williams and Carey to tee up captain Woodward but his shot carried a high degree of difficulty and he couldn’t hit the target. It started to look like the home team would be unable to pull an equaliser from what became a scrappy game, Boldmere going closest in the middle of the second half with another deflected effort that sailed just over the angle of the frame of the goal.
Further substitutions brought Jordan Hayward, Callum Martin and Roan Newey into play. Newey made his mark immediately after coming on. He collected the ball on the right with his first touch, tore into the Boldmere box and was fouled. The referee pointed to the penalty spot.
Willock drilled a confident, no-nonsense penalty beyond the grasp of the Mikes goalkeeper and Sphinx were level. They weren’t settling for a point, though, and Newey’s header was saved by Brown after excellent team play set up a crossing opportunity for Hayward on the Sphinx left.
A flurry of Sphinx attempts in the 84th minute was kept out by way of a number of quick-fire blocks and saves by Brown. Boldmere also failed to capitalise on a similar scramble at the other end as they pushed for a winner in the last few minutes. Willock dragged one last shot wide in stoppage time and the points were shared.
After the disappointment of the previous match’s postponement late in the day at AFC Rushden & Diamonds, Sphinx overcame testing circumstances at home to bank another vital point.
They drew 14 times in the league last season, three more than any other team, and have five to their name already in 2024/25. This was also a fifth draw for Boldmere, who ended the day in ninth after an away game that really could have gone either way.
Sphinx now face the long trip to Grantham Town before the visit of Wellingborough Town on Tuesday 22nd October and the rearranged game at Quorn on Tuesday 29th. After that, Sporting Khalsa, Anstey Nomads and Worcester City promise a testing first half of November for the boys in sky blue and white.
Sphinx team
Woods, Nicholson (Pursey), Shorrock, Ballinger (Martin), Zito, Guest, Williams (Newey), Woodward, Lock (Willock), Carey, Dube (Hayward)