Honours ended absolutely even when for the second time this season, the A6 derby ended in a 1-1 stalemate.
And, for the second time, that was just about right as there was little to choose between the teams. What these two results have done more than anything though is lessen the chances of either team reaching the play offs, although the draw, coupled with the Good Friday win against Hucknall has seen the Gladiators rise to seventh spot and go five games unbeaten.
Town led at the interval through Nathan Benger, but the Bucks, despite being down to ten men after Tommy Agus was dismissed for two bookings, responded with spirit and levelled through Neil Stevens in the 65th minute.
Matlock suffered a double blow prior to the kick off as defensive king-pin Mark Haran was ruled out with food poisoning and in the pre match warm up, Dene Cropper, named in the original strating line up, had to step down to the bench after feeling a twinge in his longstanding knee injury. Nathan Joynes was therefore handed the number nine shirt. Haran's absence saw Adam Yates move to a central defensive slot, Scott Brough fill in at full back and Nathan Benger adopt a wide role on the right of the midfield.
Buxton, intent on all out attack, went 4-3-3 and included all of their main strikers in Mark Reed, Gavin Knight and Lee Morris, but that move did not pay off.
Clear cut chances were few in a scrappy hard fought derby. Matlock, attacking down the Silverlands slope, had the first sniff when Ross Hannah slipped a neat pass through to Joynes who was halted by an excellent challenge by Agus. Shortly afterwards Adam Sollitt was struggling as he stretched to meet a corner and Knight ballooned well over the bar.
A quicker reaction from Joynes in the Bucks six yard box might have brought the visitors better reward than a corner which was totally wasted with Ben Algar curling behind.
Lee Featherstone tracked back well to concede a corner from a Michael Towey cross, but Matlock drew first blood after 18 minutes from a corner which Algar took far better than his earlier attempt. Buxton were caught napping as BENGER crept in at the back post to force the ball in from six yards.
Hannah looked to add to his Good Friday hat-trick from 25 yards but his well intended lob dropped over the bar. Matlock held the upper hand at this stage with Liam King and Steve Warne winning the midfield battle. It needed a brilliantly timed block by Scott Maxfield to charge down a King shot as Matlock looked to double their lead.
The derby was getting more physical by the minute and Michael Towey was booked for an elbow on benger that could easily have been a red card. But a sending off was not far away as Agus on 44 minutes went in late on hannah, and then just ninety seconds later, sent Algar sprawling to have first use of the showers.
Referee Grundy would later add the Bucks Gregg Anderson, Neil Stevens and Kieran Lugsden to his caution list with Lugsden running fully forty yards to collide with Sollitt in a fractuous finish to the game. Town's Adam Yates and Joynes were also booked.
The first chance of the second half did not arrive until the 62nd minute when Algar skilfully created a chance for himself in a speedy break only to shoot inches over the bar.
This seemed to give the Bucks a wake up call and Yates did well to charge down an reffort from STEVENS who then equalised. A free kick played deep into the Matlock box was not effectively cleared and at the second time of asking the Bucks midfielder fired a firm drive past Sollitt.
Kris Witcombe, who had replaced Benger, sent over a teasing cross from the right which saw Scott Hartley save from King. then Cropper came on for Joynes and was nearly celebrating as another Witcombe cross was nodded behind by Anderson with the substitute ready to pounce.
Buxton, in spite of being a man down, had more of the play in the closing stages, but at least Matlock showed some stern resolve to repel the attacks with Yates and James Lukic in outstanding form.
A fiercely driven corner from the right flashed across the Gladiators' penalty box, before the visitors had their one huge slice of luck as Towey towered above everyone to thump his header from a left wing cross inches past Sollitt's right hand post.
The clash threatened to boil over in stoppage time as Sollitt clashed with the petulant Mark Reed. all three men in black were on the field to calm down proceedings and after five minutes of stoppage time, referee Grundy blew the final whistle as the points were deservedly shared.
MATLOCK TOWN: Sollitt, Brough, Featherstone (Wain 80), King, Yates, Lukic, Benger (Witcombe 51), Warne, Joynes (Cropper 71), Hannah, Algar. Sub not used: Buxton.
REFEREE: C Grundy--Sheffield. ATTENDANCE: 512 STAR MAN: Adam Yates.
