Dolphin Hotel fought back from 4-1 down to rescue a point against a much improved Yetminster side in a scrappy and often bad-tempered game in Wincanton. The visitors had stormed into a 3-0 lead at half-time, playing some excellent football and making the most of their chances as Hotel fought amongst themselves, with tempers often flaring as the home side fell further behind.
Craig Biss had the best chance of the early running, but spurned an early opportunity after a poor back pass and scooped his right-footed shot over the crossbar. Biss punished the hosts soon after though, forcing goalkeeper Adam Rolls into a mistake after an Adam Marsh through-ball, before side footing home from close range to put the Sharks in front.
Yetminster extended their lead two minutes later when Nathan Ruscoe latched onto Jamie Lukosius' pass and slotted home. Worse was to follow for Dolphin when Ruscoe fired home to open out a 3-goal lead inside 37 minutes, catching another Lukosius ball on the volley.
The Sharks looked good for their lead as the interval beckoned, and had a strong claim for a penalty turned down moments before the break when Ruscoe was heavily challenged by 2 Dolphin defenders but stayed on his feet, and the appeals from the men in yellow fell on deaf ears.
Both sides looked to come out of the blocks flying in the second period, with chances aplenty at both ends. Controversy wasn't far away though, with Dean Glass awarded a penalty on 53 minutes after Jamie Lukosius was adjudged to have impeded the Dolphin striker, Glass falling theatrically to the ground in spite of seemingly minimal contact. Glass converted the resulting spot-kick to announce the home side's fightback. Tempers immediately flared though, with Norton Payne suffering a kick to the leg unseen to the referee that drew blood at the ankle in the Dolphin penalty area.
Manager Ben Jones made a double substitution on the hour mark, with Payne and Max Howard replaced by Sam Carver & Adam Roman respectively. Moments later, after another heavy challenge on Kade Masters, Yetminster re-established their 3-goal cushion when Rolls fumbled Lukosius' driven free-kick into his own net.
Charlie Browne and Greg Taylor were instrumental in the Dolphin's 2nd half resurgence, and it was Browne who scored their second goal on 72 minutes after a scramble inside the box. Chris Pullen closed the gap to a single-goal lead with just over 10 minutes to play after another messy scramble. Another scrappy defensive set-play resulted in a Dolphin header being turned in for the equalising goal.
Biss gave way for Jones with 6 minutes to play, and Yetminster looked to stop the rot and find a late winner. Ruscoe and substitute Sam Carver both forced smart saves from home stopper Rolls, but without any joy as time ran out.
Another brave performance from Yetminster that ultimately hadn't resulted in 3 points, but considering some rough treatment from the Dolphins, it's a point they'll be satisfied to take.
