Guildford City picked up a useful away point with a 2-2 draw at Alton in the Combined Counties Premier Division South.

The match was an entertaining encounter for the neutrals dotted around Anstey Park. There was end-to-end football with both sides dominating the game for periods of time.

Guildford were really sharp early on. Leevi Bassett saw an early long-range effort go wide and it was the visitors who took the lead after just six minutes.

A Darnell Jon-Peter long throw was headed on by Nik Krokhin and new signing Reece Robins acrobatically turned the ball into the net.

Guildford were looking dangerous every time they had the ball.

Manny Acheampong beat the offside trap and squared the ball to Reuben Duncan, who was very disappointed with himself for side footing wide of the target.

The game quietened for a long period as Alton established themselves in the game. The action sparked again on 34 minutes when Jon-Peter curled a long-range effort wide.

Three minutes later the home side won a penalty for handball after a period of pinball in the box. Owen Tanner stepped up to equalise from the spot and make it 1-1.

With half-time approaching Krokhin headed over from a corner. Then as the game moved into added time a Robins cross struck a defender in the box, and again the referee pointed to the spot.

Robins stepped up to convert and City were 2-1 up at the break.

Both sides had good chances in the early stages of the second half. Within a minute a powerful Alton effort heading for the top corner was brilliantly saved by Jacob Terry.

Minutes later from a corner Ben Drake’s volley forced an acrobatic save from Adam Melville in the home goal.

Angel Zapata looked a constant source of danger on the right-hand side, and his effort on 57 minutes saw Terry dive low to tip the ball round the post.

From the corner ex-City player Tolu Ajayi-Obe headed goalwards but Krokhin managed to head the ball away from under his own crossbar.

Alton were applying pressure and they won the game’s third penalty on the hour. Tanner stepped up and slid the ball into the net to make it 2-2.

In a rare City break forward Jon-Peter shot powerfully from an acute angle. Melville couldn’t hold the ball but City bodies in the box were lacking.

It was a hard-fought second period but Guildford started to concede possession rather too easily in the latter stages.

In stoppage time it seemed the home side had snatched a winner, but Ben Gambrah appeared from nowhere to clear a goalbound effort off the line.

By Barry Underwood