Bury 1 Darlington 1
11:19pm Tuesday 9th March 2010 in Bury FC By Marc Higginson
IF Bury needed a reminder that they are going to have to scrap for every last point in their push for promotion, they certainly got it against Darlington.
The Quakers might be destined for the Blue Square Premier after a torrid season on and off the pitch, but they still had enough about themselves to leave the Shakers scratching their heads.
Manager Alan Knill admitted his men came up short against a team that has won just four games all season and, but for a soft penalty awarded to them, the result could have been much worse than the draw which hauled the team back into the top three.
The Gigg Laners have gone more than 500 minutes without scoring a goal from open play and they need to rediscover their shooting boots quickly if they are to get over the finishing line.
“Let's be honest, we didn't play very well and we were lucky to go in at half-time at 1-1,” said a disappointed Knill.
“Even though we had chances we just didn't do enough to win the game.
“In the first half we didn't work hard enough to stop them. It's the first time in a long time that I can say that.
“It doesn't matter who you are, whether you are Darlington or Rochdale, if you don't stop people from playing they can hurt you.
“We gave them a stupid penalty and we were fortunate to get ours.”
Knill restored talismanic striker Andy Bishop to the starting line-up to try and re-ignite his side's push for League One but the move reaped little rewards on a frustrating night.
The first half was a tale of two penalties, with Bury extremely fortunate to win the spot-kick that sent them into the interval on level terms.
Darlington made most of the early pressing but it was the Shakers who were carving out the better chances as Michael Jones, Ryan Lowe and Bishop all went close.
Bishop, making his first start since September, was looking particularly sharp and Shane Redmond had to be at his best to tip the master marksman's header wide after another effort was scrambled off the line.
The Quakers were still a threat, however, and they took the lead from the spot on the half-hour mark.
Ryan Cresswell clumsily brought down Gary Smith in the area and Irish striker Tadgh Purcell stepped up to score his seventh goal in 11 games.
Knill's men were rattled and they needed a huge slice of luck to restore parity.
Stephen Dawson was adjudged to have been fouled in the box by Josh Gray, despite being behind the defender when racing into the box, and Lowe kept his head to convert the penalty.
Bury struggled to create many chances in the second half and it took them until the hour-mark to fashion an opening, which Lowe squandered when he fired over the bar.
Tom Elliott was brought on to replace a tiring Bishop and it was his direct run into the heart of the Darlington defence that brought about a free-kick from which Tom Newey blasted wide.
Jones then missed a glorious opportunity to put his side into the lead when he too found the stands after Redmond had spilled the ball under pressure from Elliott.
The game was beginning to become stretched, with neither side happy with a point, and Mor Diop forced a fingertip save from Wayne Brown with a delicate chipped shot.
The nerves started to seep from the stands to the pitch late into the game as Bury squandered possession far too readily and, despite throwing numbers forward in search of an elusive winner, the Shakers, who travel to Macclesfield on Saturday, had to settle for a point.
“It is frustrating for everybody at the moment but we have to keep going to dig ourselves out of this hole.,” concluded Knill.
“Everybody is edgy and it shows. We all want to do so well but, at the moment, it is just not happening.”
BURY: Brown 7, Buchanan 7, Futcher 7, Cresswell 6, Newey 6, Worrall 6 (Hewson 6, 78), Dawson 8, Barry-Murphy 7, Jones 6, Bishop 6 (Elliott 7, 61), Lowe 7. Subs not used: Baker, Racchi, Sodje, Morrell, Belford.
DARLINGTON: Redmond 6, White 7, Miller 7, Dempsey 7, Smith 7, Main 7, Purcell 7, Giddings 6 (Gray 6, 22), Madden 7, Waite 6, Diop 7. Subs not used: Liversedge, Mulligan, Chisholm, McReady, Deane, Burn.
Attendance: 2,123 (79 Darlington fans)
Referee: Mr Andy Hall (West Midlands)
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