BEDFORD TOWN 1 CIRENCESTER TOWN 1

CIRENCESTER Town picked up a well-deserved point after a tricky trip to the Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division's form side.

Bedford had won five of their previous six matches but were unable to break down a determined Centurions side at The Eyrie Ground.

Cirencester got off to a nervy start with young goalkeeper Mike Hedges dashing from his area on six minutes, missing the ball and fortunate to see Jermaine Ivy flash his shot wide.

The division's top scorer Drew Roberts tested Hedges a minute later but the academy graduate saved well.

After another escape, this time from a melee following a free-kick, Cirencester began to grow into the game.

Jon Else fired wide and Andy Gunn had an effort cleared off the line from a corner, before Hedges saved superbly from Gareth Price.

Scott Griffin had the last chance of the half, hooking a volley narrowly wide of the target as the sides changed ends with the scoreboard blank.

Bedford thought they had scored just after half-time when Roberts was put through and his shot beat Hedges, only to ricochet back off the post and to safety.

Four minutes later, Bedford goalkeeper Ian Brown pulled off a superb saved to deny Lee Smith, after the former Gloucester City winger was set up for a far-post volley by Jamie Reid.

Brown went from hero to villain six minutes later, however.

Else's speculative shot from distance was spilled by the Bedford number one and a gleeful Reid slammed home the rebound to give Cirencester the lead.

Smith went perilously close to adding a second shortly afterwards but his left-footed drive swerved on to the angle of post and bar and away to safety.

Griffin then wasted an unbelievable chance to score as Brown spilled another shot but much to the amazement of the crowd veteran striker Griffin somehow failed to score from a yard out.

That proved to be a costly miss as with just nine minutes remaining, Roberts did well down the right and his excellent cross was headed back across goal by Ollie Thorne for James Hatch to head home.

With just two minutes left, Roberts thought he had won it when he shot with power to the far top corner, but Hedges threw himself full length to parry behind one handed for a corner.

It left for a frantic final few minutes of injury time where both teams had half chances to win the game before the whistle blew.

Bedford Town: I Brown, M York, A James, J Darby, G Hoyte, O Thorne, G Price, J Beech, J Ivy, D Roberts, T Damon. subs: J Cole, C Lewis, S Simpson, J Hatch, M Kavanagh.

Cirencester Town: M Hedges, S Claridge, E Dunton, A Gunn, J Reid, Z Westlake, W Turk, J Mortimer-Jones, L Smith (J Bevan, 71). S Griffin, J Else. Subs: J Dunn, P Banks.

Referee: Mr T Power

Attendance: 251