Prestatyn Town 2 Porthmadog 2

PORTHMADOG needed to show grit and character following the demoralising 7-1 hiding at Gresford Athletic in the JD Cymru North last week and they did just that.

Manager Craig Papirnyk apologised to the travelling support last week for what he described as the worst performance since he took charge of the Traeth team and deserves credit for lifting the squad to a battling 2-2 draw at runaway league leaders Prestatyn Town.

Two great strikes from Shaun Cavanagh were the highlights of a workmanlike display at Bastion Road.

The team was sent out by Papirnyk and assistant Alun Winstanley to make life difficult for the hosts and the players stuck to the plan.

Once again the wind was a determining factor in the way the game was played but this time Port showed that the lessons of the previous week had been learned as they frustrated Prestatyn by ending their 100 per cent home record.

With regular keeper Paul Pritchard unable to play through injury, Papirnyk recalled Traeth legend Richard Harvey and despite not having played since his retirement in May 2018, his experience and quality made him the perfect choice in such testing conditions.

Port started with a bare bones squad for, in addition to Pritchard, they were without suspended duo Gareth Jones Evans and Jay Gibbs while John Owen was also absent having suffered a nasty injury at Gresford.

Prestatyn were soon on the attack with the wind on their backs and Harvey was soon called on to show he still has it, going down well to cut out a dangerous low cross.

The home team were soon showing why they top the table by breaking quickly, bringing their widemen into the game and when they lost the ball they worked hard closing down quickly to regain the ball.

Port on the other hand knew they would need to stay organised, keep their discipline, keep things tight and wait for their turn with the wind on their backs.

The home team were enjoying the early possession and Daniel Davies fired over the bar from the edge of the box and on 11 minutes a good ball into the box found Jordan Davies whose clever lob went across goal and narrowly wide.

Port looked to bide their time and hit on the break and a good angled shot from Cavanagh tested home keeper Jon Rushton.

Despite their pressure the first real threat to Harvey’s goal came on 19 minutes when Alex Jones, having received a good ball on the right of the box, struck the post with an angled shot.

Then on 29 minutes Port received a setback which could have been a turning point. As Harvey came well off his line to collect a long through ball, the wind took it away from him and in the ensuing scramble he was adjudged to have fouled and referee Aaron Jones pointed to the spot.

Harvey down well to his left saved Jordan Davies’ shot from 12 yards but the spot kicker followed up to net the rebound.

Heads, however, did not go down and the defence remained strong. They survived several corners and some dangerous wind assisted free kicks from Zebb Edwards, one of which Harvey had to turn for a corner. With memories of Clapper’s Lane still raw, a single goal deficit after 45 minutes was a very positive response.

The second half was a fairly scrappy affair but given a huge lift by three excellent goals.

In the early stages Alex Jones for Prestatyn, met a Ben Maher corner but his header went wide while Cai Jones for Port worked himself into space but pulled his shot wide.

The game was not flowing and neither side was able to create problems for either keeper.

Then on 64 minutes Port got themselves well and truly back into the contest. Shaun Cavanagh received wide on the right, cut inside and then unleashed a powerfully struck angled shot past the despairing hands of Rushton to level the score.

Following the goal defences and the wind remained in charge with a dangeous Ben Maher free kick being flicked narrowly wide and Cai Jones for Port lifting his shot over the bar.

Then on 82 minutes Cavanagh threatened to stand the game entirely on its head. With Port awarded a free kick 25 yards out, Cavanagh’s power shot thumped against the crossbar before deflecting off the beaten Rushton into the net.

The ecstatic travelling support had visions of the impossible but it did not last, for just three minutes later Maher’s left foot cracked a beauty of a free kick from wide right and high into the roof of the net.

A pleased Craig Papirnyk said: “Great point today away to a very good Prestatyn side, more importantly a much improved performance and reaction from the players after last week.

“Really pleased for the travelling supporters who were behind the lads all game once again.”