St Peter's played out their fourth draw of the season in a goalless match against Wormley Rovers.

The point keeps the Saints in fifth place in what is turning out to be a pretty useful campaign after winning promotion to the Premier Division in May.

"If you'd have offered us this start at the beginning of the season we'd have bitten your hand off," said John Welsh, Saints manager.

"Ironically, the only two games we've lost have been against the sides that came up with us."

His team were never in danger of losing a third at Wormley who played some good football but never threatened to pierce the Saints back line. The same might also be said for St Peter's, although Elroy Richardson had a couple of chances to steal the points in the second half.

The first, from a breakaway, was blocked before he was denied an opener with his second effort by a large slice of illfortune. Having found space for a shot, his lobbed effort left the keeper stranded and was heading in before coming to a halt in a puddle on the goal line.

"The two sides were so evenly matched," Welsh said. "You can't make it sound like a good game because it wasn't.

Both defences were on top but the way we look at it we're still picking up points."

St Peter's have some time off now before two games away at London Lions, the first in on October 20 in the league followed a week later by a County Cup match.

Having played well without much reward in their previous two fixtures, Sandridge Rovers can have little complaint about a 3-2 reverse at London Lions on Saturday, despite a spirited second half comeback.

Alan Oaks might have given Rovers a lead early on when shooting against the crossbar, but that was it in the first half as the visitors lost their way.

After a quarter of an hour, the Sandridge defence was caught square by Paul Miller's clever run and a neat finish put the Lions a goal to the good. In response, Rovers lacked any degree of cohesion and their best efforts to level matters were more hopeful than anything else. In fact, they went two behind on 38 minutes when Tomms fouled inside the box and Paul Behar slotted home. With concentration waning, poor marking allowed the home side to add a third right on half time, leaving Alan Ring's side with a mountain to climb in the second half.

However, after a heated address from their manager - "That's the only time I'll talk to them like that this season," he said - Rovers were a different side after the break and with more luck in front of goal might have done to the Lions what Manchester United recently did to Spurs.

A goal from Bradely Anderson after 52 minutes, turning sharply in the box to fire home, set the tone and he and Oaks each might have made it 3-2 before the second arrived in the 82nd minute.

Mark Vidgen had come off the bench and his goal set up a stormy finish which proved difficult for the referee and fruitless for Rovers.

For more of the action, see the St Albans Observer of Thursday, October 11.

October 11, 2001 19:10