Leverstock Green halted their run of defeats as they came from behind to gain a point with a 2-2 home draw against Ampthill Town. Ampthill are bottom of the league, but they had won their previous two games, including an impressive win over Berkhamsted last week, and given the depleted nature of the Green squad today, a point was a reasonable result.

Injuries and suspensions combined to rob manager Dene Gardner of ten first team players this afternoon. Reserve team goalkeeper Jordan I'Anson and under-18 player Jaiden Shelley-McPherson were both drafted in for their first team debuts in an unfamiliar-looking Green side.

It was the visitors who had the first sight of goal in the 5th minute when Sheldon Washington broke away on a solo run but eventually shot across the face of goal. Chances were at a premium on a surface on which both teams were struggling to keep their feet, but in the 29th minute Leverstock made the breakthrough via the direct route. A kick from I'Anson was flicked on by Shelley-McPherson to Luke Warner-Eley, who threaded it through for Nathan Jellow to slide the ball under the keeper and put the Green into a 1-0 lead.

Shelley-McPherson had a shooting chance himself a minute later, but it was deflected wide, and from the resulting corner the keeper fumbled from Danny Arnett's header, but recovered the ball.

Ampthill had another chance in the 37th minute when I'Anson came out to punch away a cross from Danny Butler but missed the ball, however Andrew Sinclair shot over the empty net.

The visitors made a strong start to the second half, and levelled in the 51st minute when Danny Butler got on the end of a cross from Charlie Cullen with a header that looped over I'Anson into the net.

Worse was to follow for Leverstock six minutes later when an attack broke down and they were caught out by a hefty Ampthill clearance upfield. Sledge Mubama was the last defender and should have dealt with it, but he hesitated and was robbed by Washington, who was left clean through to slot the ball past I'Anson and put Ampthill 2-1 up.

It might have been 3-1 on 65 minutes, but I'Anson made a good save to turn a shot from Sinclair round the post. Leverstock thought they had equalised on 74 minutes when David Sobers set up Warner-Eley to stab the ball under the keeper, but the offside flag stopped the celebrations. However, three minutes later Warner-Eley received the ball just outside the box and hit a superb strike to level the scores at 2-2.

Ampthill could have won it with the last kick of the game, but I'Anson came out of his box to put in an excellent tackle on the forward who was clean through, and seconds later the referee blew the final whistle on a well-contested 2-2 draw.

Leverstock are at home to Ware in the Herts Senior Cup on Tuesday night, in a game rescheduled from last week, and next Saturday they are at home to AFC Dunstable in the league.