Hayes & Yeading’s unbeaten run stretched to eight games at the SKYex on Tuesday evening as Paul Hughes’ side were held to a 2-2 draw by an impressive Chesham United outfit who twice pegged the home side back.

The gaffer made a single enforced change with Omar Rowe returning to the starting line-up as Jake Sheppard missed out through an injury sustained during the Emirates FA Cup victory at Wealdstone a few days earlier.

It was the visitors who started the brighter in this encounter and in just the sixth minute maybe should have taken an early lead when a corner kick was played deep to Chesham skipper Adam Martin but despite being loosely marked his header only found the outside on the United goal.

Either side of the fifteen minute mark the visitors created two further openings, firstly a neat throughball found Eoin Casey, Jack Smith did well to force him wide and when the loose ball found it’s way to Zak Joseph a combination of Smith and Jack Williams manged to scramble the ball away to safety.

Soon after a ball played forwards to Jake Cass was superbly controlled by the striker, his shot on the turn being held by the diving Smith.

On 31 minutes and against the run of play, United had a first effort on goal, and it produced the opening goal. Omar Rowe battled his way through a succession of challenges just inside the Chesham area and as the ball ran free, Francis Amartey fired in his eighth of the season giving ‘keeper Sam Beasant no chance.

Minutes later the visitors forced another fine save out of Smith, this time the United stopper tipping over a Bradley Clayton drive after a neat short corner routine had seen Sam Jenkins thread the ball to his teammate, the outcome somehow being the award of a goal kick to United much to the annoyance of the visiting side.

Still the visitors dominated the ball, however United almost had a second on 38 minutes when a 20 yard Karl Cunningham free-kick glanced off the defensive wall before dropping just the wrong side of the upright with Beasant wrong-footed.

The final chance of the opening half not surprisingly fell to the visitors and was another dead ball strike. Clayton struck a free-kick from the corner of the United box, Bay Downing did well to block the effort in the wall with the ball dropping to Billy Adcock who saw his volley held by Smith and United went in a somewhat fortunate goal to the good at the break.

Within seconds of the re-start the visitors went close again as a ball in from the right side found Cass but his driven effort was inches too high to really trouble Smith.

Just before the hour mark both teams substitutes faced each other in the United area with the quicker feet of Karl Oliyide turning past Samir Bajja with the United man deemed to have tripped his opposite number and referee Gelov pointed to the spot without hesitation. Cass stepped up and duly sent Smith the wrong way to pull his side level.

The equilibrium was to last just three minutes as Downing won possession for United inside the Chesham half of the field, he played the ball to Amartey in the right channel, the striker turning past his marked and crossing low to Cunningham who set the ball back nicely to Rowe who fired past Beasant from the edge of the box the restore United’s advantage.

Four minutes later Joseph lofted a free-kick into the United box from the right, the partial clearance was again met by Adcock on the volley but this time his effort went over the United goal without troubling Smith.

In the 72nd minute a double one-two between Downing and Rowe saw the latter shoot from the edge of the box only for Beasant to hold comfortably and then with ten minutes to play the visitors deservedly drew level for a second time. Clayton’s cross from the right found Cass on the edge of the box, his drive being deflected inches wide by a timely defensive interception. Sadly having survived this, the corner kick found Mark Kirby at the far post, his initial header was pushed out by Smith only for the defender to acrobatically volley the ball back into the roof of the United net and we were all square once again.

The rest of the game was played a bit on a knife edge with defences finally getting on top and with no further real goalmouth incident the game concluded with the points shared.

Report by Kevin Watts.

United Man of the Match: Jack Williams.

Print the Teamsheet: Here.