Stourbridge 1 Frickley Athletic 1

Despite being the better side and making much of the running, the Glassboys fell behind to a goal from Luke Hinsley just after the midway point of the first half. Karl Hawley’s tidy finish less than 30 seconds into the second period brought the scores level, but the Glassboys could not find a winner and might even have surrendered the point they did take had Matt Gould not produced an excellent stop to deny Jacob Hazel in stoppage time.

There were no changes to the eleven that had started in last Monday’s 4-1 win against Matlock Town, with newly re-signed Tom Tonks having to make do with a place on the bench.

It took time for the game to warm up, with the first effort of any note not arriving until 12 minutes in when Justin Richards shot straight at Sebastian Malkowski in the visitors’ goal. Frickley’s Sam Akeroyd miscued his shot over the bar when well placed just outside the area a couple of minutes later, before Leon Broadhurst and Chris Lait combined with the latter crossing for Hawley to flick a header just wide on 17 minutes.

Dan Scarr headed narrowly wide from Sean Geddes’s free kick with 22 minutes played, but there was a surprise in store for the Glassboys just two minutes later, as Steven Jeff lofted a ball into the Stourbridge area that Scarr misjudged, allowing Hinsley to turn and place a low shot beyond Gould.

Stourbridge looked to hit back through Lait, who could only fire straight at Malkowski with 28 minutes on the clock, but generally it was becoming a struggle to penetrate a resolute Frickley defence. Lait again might have done better on 41 minutes, after being set up by Richards, but once more his shot was right at Malkowski.

After a frustrating first half, Stourbridge will have wanted an early equaliser to settle themselves down, and they could have asked for no more than one in the first minute. Kristian Green’s incisive pass from the right allowed Hawley to side-foot home and restore parity.

Stourbridge continued to take the game to the visitors but clear chances proved hard to come by. Matt Dodd and Geddes combined to set up Richards who skied his shot over the bar on 54 minutes, and then Lait had a go from the edge of the box with a shot that Malkowski managed to hold as it squirmed through.

The visitors had the chance to lead again, though, with 64 minutes played as Stuart Pierpoint conceded a free kick on the edge of the penalty area, which Hazel could only send well off target.

Geddes and Lait both shot wide as the game entered the last 20 minutes, and then Pierpoint saw his header go the same way, before Malkowski pulled off an excellent double save to deny another header from Scarr, and then Hawley’s follow-up overhead kick. Suspicion was growing that it might not be Stourbridge’s day.

The final ten minutes saw little in the way of openings, as Stourbridge became increasingly fractured in their efforts to force a goal. Substitute Ashley Vincent forced a low save from Malkowski at his near post as the 90 minute mark ticked past, and then Geddes sent a free kick into the keeper’s grateful arms two minutes later, whilst a deflection off Richards then drifted wide after neat work from Dodd and Hawley.

And there was still time for Stour to survive an almighty scare at the other end five minutes into added time as Hazel burst into the box only for Gould to come off his line and save smartly.

Stourbridge may feel this was two points lost, but against a determined visiting side the one gained may prove its worth by the end of the season.

The draw means Stourbridge climb back up to fifth place in the Premier Division table.