TADCASTER Albion and Pickering Town played out a 1-1 draw in a North Yorkshire derby in midweek.

The hosts secured their first draw of the NCEL Premier Division campaign to Pickering, in an entertaining encounter which saw both teams reduced to 10 men.

Mason Wilson, who doesn’t often find himself on the scoresheet, cancelled out former Brewer Omar Sanyang’s penalty to put his side within five points of the playoff places.

Tadcaster were threatening immediately with a strong starting eleven being restored by manager Mick O’Connell; wide men Luca Bolino and Ethan Kachosa looked dangerous on the ball out wide and several moves forward were focused through their accurate crosses which were all safely cut out. 

It was Kachosa who was denied in the game’s first clear cut chance, collecting the ball in a central position before touching the ball past winger George Harrison who was covering for his defence during a Pickering set piece.

One-on-one with the goalkeeper, Kachosa’s effort was superbly half-blocked before Alfie Burnett saved the deflected shot.

Pickering were awarded a free kick not much more than 20-yards from Sam Green’s goal after Joe Wood was unfairly brought down on the counter.

Captain Wayne Brooksby fired his shot around the wall and towards the bottom right corner, forcing Green into a smart save.

Brooksby was involved again soon after, showing great composure in the final third to trap down the ball from a throw in and threat a neat pass into striker George Brown, who turned and hit a rasping shot from the edge of the penalty area towards Green’s top right which was palmed away in a sprawling save.

The Brewers survived a scare on the half-an-hour mark as Pickering found some momentum going forward, working the ball quickly out to the left.

An effortless one-two sent wing back Harry Lovick in behind on the left, who delivered a cross right across the face of goal without any connection.

Disaster soon struck for the away side, just as they began to mount pressure on Tadcaster.

Holding midfielder Harley Dawson, formerly of York City, managed to get away from Andrew Shepherd in the middle but struggled to control the ball, leading him into a late lunge on Ben Tweed.

Referee Luke Tomkins promptly brandished a red card, allowing Tadcaster to settle after a tense period on the defensive.

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A mere three minutes into the second half, Tadcaster missed the opportunity to profit from the man advantage as Shepherd was shown a second yellow card for unsporting play, tripping Brown and preventing a promising attack after he received a throw in on the left.

The game turned fairly scrappy with the numbers even once more; an untidy showing from both sides was compounded on 68 minutes when Sam Kitchen was judged to have handled a bouncing ball in the penalty area, trying to lever it away from a Pickering forward.

Sanyang, who once played in Tadcaster yellow, slotted the penalty calmly into the bottom right. 0-1.

Pickering Town’s lead was only to last six minutes. Ben Tweed showed silky feet in the left channel, level with the penalty area, before crossing in from the left.

The ball fell to substitute right wing-back Wilson on the edge of the box, who shifted onto his left foot and arrowed a low drive under the goalkeeper and into the net.

Tweed was in space again entering the final third, moving the ball to the right in Bolino who had switched sides with the electric Kachosa in an attempt to incite confusion in the Pickering back line.

Tadcaster Albion's Sam Green produces a fine stop to Pickering Town captain Wayne Brooksby's effort.Tadcaster Albion's Sam Green produces a fine stop to Pickering Town captain Wayne Brooksby's effort. (Image: Keith Handley) Having been in great form before being ruled out due to injury, with five goals in nine appearances, he went around the outside of Lovick with pace before flashing a shot towards the top corner only for Burnett to get across and secure the ball.

In a half of fewer chances for Pickering Town, substitute Sam Calvert provided the last chance for his side to snatch a winner.

Conor Qualter slightly misjudged a high ball over the midfield before Calvert, in behind the centre half, found Harry Jessop in a promising position, yet he could only direct his shot narrowly wide of the right post after getting away from Wilson.

Both sides may have felt at different points during the game that they could have walked away with more than a draw, yet failed to show their true quality and assume control when the opportunity was handed to them by a sending off.

TADCASTER ALBION: Green, Hardcastle (Wilson, 67), Owen, Knowles, Qualter, Shepherd, Bolino (Greenway, 81), Kitchen (F. Ibrahimi, 76), A. Ibrahimi (Andrew, 61), Tweed, Kachosa 

PICKERING TOWN: Burnett, Thornton, Lovick, Drury, Avison, Dawson, Harrison, Brooksby (Calvert, 61), Brown (Kelly, 76), Sanyang, Wood (Jessop, 76) 

Attendance: 158