Worksop Town rescue late point against Darlington
Jordan Burrow’s late header earned Worksop Town a deserved point as the Tigers were held to a 1-1 draw by Darlington at the Windsor Foodservice Stadium.
The visitors made the perfect start, taking the lead just three minutes in. A long throw caused problems inside the Worksop penalty area and, after a flick-on from captain Tom Platt, Cedric Main bundled the ball over the line from close range to give Darlington an early advantage.
Main almost doubled his tally shortly afterwards when a misplaced pass from Sam Wedgbury sent him through on goal. The striker attempted an ambitious lob, but his powerful effort struck the crossbar and was safely gathered by Lewis Forshaw.
Worksop began to grow into the contest and created their first clear opening when Jordan Burrow met a Mason O’Malley cross, sweeping a first-time effort towards the bottom-right corner. However, Darlington goalkeeper Pete Jameson reacted well to push the ball away.
Darlington threatened again just before the interval as Will McGowan pounced on a mistake from Sam Sanders and fired a shot towards goal, forcing Forshaw into a smart save. The rebound fell to Will Tweedy, but he could only send his effort over the bar.
The first opportunity of the second half fell to Aiden Rutledge, who showed good footwork inside the box before curling his shot well over. Burrow continued to test the visitors’ defence and was denied again when he met a Lewis Whitham cross, only for Jameson to make a crucial block.
Main thought he had scored his second when he headed home at the back post, but celebrations were cut short as the linesman raised his flag for offside.
Worksop’s persistence finally paid off in the 82nd minute. Substitute Sean Tarima delivered an excellent cross to the near post, where Burrow produced a superb glancing header to beat Jameson and level the score.
Darlington pushed for a late winner, with Max Howells firing wide after meeting a Jack Maskall cross. Worksop also had chances to snatch all three points, as Chae Whitman-Brown and Paddy McLaughlin both went close in the closing stages.
In the end, it was a hard-earned point for the Tigers, who now turn their attention to Saturday’s trip to the Mounting Systems Stadium to face Scarborough Athletic.