The Pitmen produce one of their most convincing displays in many a month this afternoon as they hold runaway league leaders Leek Town to a draw at Keys Park in front of step four's highest crowd of the day

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Four points from two largely unconvincing displays had moved Paul Moore's side to within four points of nearest rivals Trafford going into today's round of games. It had been one in and one out for the hosts in midweek, as the popular Joe Thompson had departed following a seven-day approach from Runcorn Linnets and had been replaced by the vastly experienced Adriano Moke, who had joined the club shortly after his release by Vanarama National League North side Darlington. Moke was one of five changes to the side that had started Tuesday night's 1-1 draw against Vauxhall Motors as he replaced James McQuilkin, skipper Sam Griffiths came back in for Mike McGrath, Tom Thorley returned ahead of Michael Williams, Lewis Farmer was handed a full debut in place of Danny Edwards and Eden Bailey was preferred to Joe Berks

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Leek - looking to wrap up the league title in the next couple of games with a commanding lead at the top of the league table - arrived at Keys Park off the back of a twenty-game unbeaten run, extending back to November when they were beaten by Runcorn Linnets. Manager Josh Brehaut made two changes of his own for their trip to the south of the county as Tom Reilly came back in for Tom Scully and Aaron Opoku replaced Lucas Weir

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With it being Non-League Day, added to by a good following from the Leek supporters, the crowd had swelled to nearly 1,500 at kick-off, making it the fourth-highest attendance in the league this season and the third involving Hednesford. There was a strong wind coming from the Hednesford end of the ground, which was factored into Griffiths winning the toss and choosing to play with the gust behind them in the first period. Opoku - making a rare start up front for the visitors - made a run in on goal in the second minute and beat Brown to the bouncing ball, lifting it over the head on the onrushing stopper but seeing the ball drop kindly into the path of Josh Endall, who cleared the danger

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Leek's direct approach to the game earned them a free-kick in a dangerous position in the seventh minute as Opoku drew a foul out of Endall twenty-five yards from goal. Louis Keenan - a former Hednesford man from fully thirteen seasons ago now - whipped the ball into the box but got a little too much on it and the ball sailed over the heads of everyone and out of play for a goal kick

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The Pitmen had Keys Park in raptures on ten minutes as a flowing move down the right saw Rowe and Farmer link up well, playing a quick one-two on the edge of the penalty area with Farmer's clever through ball through the legs of Julius Ndene finding Rowe once more. With the angle against him, Rowe drove the ball towards goal, doing enough to force it past Visser and into the net. Visser will have been unhappy with his part in the goal, as he probably will have felt that he should have kept Rowe's shot out

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Jake Jervis felt that he should have been given a free-kick just outside the Leek penalty area on fourteen minutes as he was shoved to the ground by Keenan after the pair challenged for a Thorley pass out on the right. Referee Mr Parker was unimpressed with the big forward's pleas, however, and Leek could clear their lines

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Two minutes later, Liam Buckley did well down the right for the away side, getting past Jack Kelly and standing up a cross to the far post that was held up in the wind, making it a far easier task for Brown to claim the ball ahead of Rob Stevenson

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Opoku was handed the afternoon's first yellow card by Mr Parker on eighteen minutes as he looked to bustle his way past Griffiths but intentionally handled the ball in the build-up and was booked for doing so

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A spell of pressure from the Pitmen saw them win back-to-back corner kicks out on the right, with Kelly coming across to take both but struggling with the wind being against him as the second one drifted over Visser's crossbar and timely out of play as he looked to pick out Jervis at the far post

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Just after the midway point in the first half, Keenan linked up well with Tom Carr on the left-hand edge of the Hednesford penalty area, with Carr laying the ball off to Opoku who was standing inside the 'D' However, the striker was given the bird from the home fans after he completely missed his shot, scuffing the ball away from goal and allowing Kelly to clear. Leek recycled the ball well, however, with Keenan crossing the ball towards Carr, who was beaten to the ball by Brown, despite the stopper initially spilling the cross and claiming it at the second attempt

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The Pitmen were looking solid, confident and for the first time in many matches, a cohesive unit, with everyone in white willing to put a shift in for the side. In midfield, Thorley was having a fine game alongside the outstanding Moke, supported well by the hard-running Farmer and two full-backs in Kelly and Rowe willing to get forward and overlap their wingers

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On thirty-two minutes, Endall went down on halfway after coming off worst in a challenge with Carr; with the game continuing, Rowe suffered a crucial moment of indecision as he chased the ball down ahead of Opoku and ended up falling awkwardly, immediately signalling to the bench to come off as he held his right leg. McQuilkin - having played several games as an auxiliary right-back this season - came on in the youngster's place

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McQuilkin's first involvement in the game was to hand Leek a free-kick in a dangerous position on thirty-five minutes as a high boot on Stevenson was penalised by Mr Parker. Keenan took the free-kick but could not pick out Carr at the far post as Endall did enough to glance the ball away for a corner to the visitors

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Mr Parker angered the travelling support two minutes later as he mystifyingly awarded Hednesford a goal-kick after Griffiths had nipped in ahead of Carr to toe-poke the ball away from the striker as he burst into the penalty area, turning it behind for what the Leek fans assumed would be a corner kick

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Leek were certainly finishing the half the stringer of the two sides, with Opoku proving a thorn in the Hednesford side with his movement. On forty-one minutes, he burst into the box before being bundled off the ball by a strong but fair challenge from Endall. A few seconds later, Carr looked to get the better of Griffiths but he too was eased off the ball by the Hednesford captain. In a break in play, Olly Harrison complained to Mr Parker about the decisions going against his side and was booked for dissent

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With a minute of the first half remaining, Brown kept his side in the lead with a fine double save after Keenan's cross from the left wing was cleared as far as Harrison, whose shot was blocked by the stopper before he denied Carr on the follow-up with a smothering stop down to his left

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And yet, the Pitmen could have been two goals to the good at the break as the final action of the half saw Jai Verma seize upon a headed clearance from Fenton Green, spotting Visser off his line and attempting a chipped half-volley over the head of the stopper from twenty-five yards out that drifted just over the stopper's crossbar

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It had been an impressive first-half showing from the hosts, who had turned the form book on its head with a committed, disciplined display against the champions-elect and had limited their danger men to only a handful of decent chances whilst taking their best chance of the game through Rowe to hold the lead at the break

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Verma looked to get the home side going with the second half's first real action on forty-eight minutes as he picked up a pass from Moke and took the ball down the left, jinking inside before lifting his shot from nearly thirty yards out high over the crossbar

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Brehaut had given his side ten minutes to react at the start of the second half, but with no breakthrough in sight for the Blues, the Leek manager elected to throw on eighteen-goal Daniel Trickett-Smith - scorer of Leek's second goal against the Pitmen at Harrison Park back in December - in place of the out-of-luck Opoku

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Two minutes later, the Pitmen broke quickly down the left as Moke played Verma into space with another good ball, only for Verma's slide-rule pass to Bailey to be called back after an offside flag against the striker in the build-up

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Jervis used his pace and long legs to good effect just before the hour mark, streaking away from Keenan down the right and whipping in a low cross to the near post where Bailey was beaten to the ball by the covering Harrison

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Stevenson - celebrating his 300th appearance for Leek today - tested Brown's reflexes on sixty-two minutes as he cut in from the left, dribbling past both McQuilkin and Moke before firing in a shot from twenty yards out that Brown parried away to his right

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The same player was thwarted by the young Hednesford stopper once more just sixty seconds later as he cut in from the left once more, striking a more angled drive that was easily fielded by Brown

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Leek had most definitely had the better of play in the second half so far, and you did get the feeling that their pressure would eventually tell against a home defence that had been notoriously leaky all season long. Trickett-Smith went on a mazy run towards the Hednesford defence down the left channel midway through the second half as he jinked his way past two challenges before seeing his attempted shot at goal blocked by Griffiths, throwing his body in the way of the ball to divert it away from danger

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Brehaut elected to make his second change of the afternoon on seventy-one minutes as Weir made a swift return to the side as he replaced Reilly in midfield

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Leek's pressure finally told in fortuitous circumstances a minute later as the league leaders were handed an equaliser by the hugely unlucky Griffiths; Keenan picked Stevenson's lay-off out wide on the left and sent over a searching ball into the box, looking for the run of Carr. Griffiths looked to hook the ball away but seemed to get caught in two minds as a late call from Brown put him off his stride, leading him to slice Keenan's cross into his own net at the near post. Desperately unlucky from the skipper, who had been superb at the back all afternoon long

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Back came the Pitmen, who still felt that they could claim the crucial three points for themselves in the final fifteen minutes of the game. On seventy-five minutes, Visser handed the hosts a free-kick on the edge of the penalty area after carrying the ball out of his box. Kelly and Verma stood over the ball, with Kelly taking ownership of the set-piece but lifted his effort over the crossbar with a curling shot over the Leek wall

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Two minutes later, Moke's race was run as he went down in the centre circle and remained on the floor holding his leg. He gingerly got back to his feet and limped off, replaced by Edwards in midfield. It was perhaps understandable as the 34-year-old had not started a game for Darlington in the past month so was a little short of match fitness coming into today's game

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A minute later, experienced striker Nathan Delfouneso returned to the side after missing Tuesday night's game as he came on to add his know-how to the side as the hard-working but out-of-luck Bailey was withdrawn

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Leek's final substitution of the afternoon came with ten minutes remaining as the highly experienced Tim Grice came in place of Carr as Leek looked to go on and turn the game on its head to claim all three points

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Griffiths picked up Hednesford's only booking of the afternoon on eighty-two minutes as Mr Parker showed the defender a yellow card for a slightly over-zealous challenge on Visser as the pair challenged for an Edwards corner kick on the left

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Visser was called upon once more two minutes later to claim a cross from Edwards after good play down the right involving Thorley, McQuilkin and the other substitute saw Edwards look to pick out Delfouneso, only for Visser to confidently pluck the ball out of the air

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Leek continued to press as the game moved into its final few minutes, winning back-to-back corner kicks but could not break the resistance of the Hednesford defenders. However, one great chance presented itself to Stevenson in the first of six added minutes as Thorley lost the ball in midfield to Weir, who strode into the Pitmen's half before playing Stevenson in on the left. His low cross was aimed at Trickett-Smith at the far post, only for Endall to dive in and block the shot before the lanky defender produced an even better block to deny Weir on the follow-up with a match-saving stop

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A useful and impressive point gained in the context of the ninety minutes for Hednesford, who remain four points adrift after Trafford battled back to a 2-2 draw against 1874 Northwich to maintain the gap at the foot of the table. A third home game in a row for the Pitmen next Saturday sees play-off hopefuls Witton Albion make the trip down from Cheshire in what will be another crucial game for both sides but for very different reasons

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Hednesford Town: Brown, Rowe (McQuilkin 34), Kelly, Thorley, Griffiths © ▆, Endall, Verma, Moke (Edwards 77), Bailey (Delfouneso 78), Farmer, Jervis      Subs Unused: Berks, Morley

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Leek Town: Visser, Buckley, Keenan, Ndene, Harrison ▆, Green, Grocott, Reilly (Weir 71), Opoku ▆ (Trickett-Smith 54), Carr (Grice 80), Stevenson     Subs Unused: McMahon, Parsisson

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