Ross Hannah's ninth goal of the season earned Matlock a draw after Frickley had come from behind to lead at Causeway Lane on Tuesday night.
It was a case of a good start, a poor middle and a storming finish from Matlock who after equalising, twice struck the woodwork. But Town paid the price for allowing the visitors to dominate for twenty five minutes at the start of the second half.
Fresh from their excellent performance and victory at table topping Stocksbridge three days earlier, the hosts looked intent on continuing from where they left off as they pushed Frickley back in the opening exchanges.Their early assault nearly bore fruit firstly on 7 minutes when following a flowing move on the left, the ball was played in for captain Steve Warne to shoot firmly at goalkeeper Adam Nicklin from the edge of the box. Two minutes later a wonderful long pass from Scott Brough released Jamie Jackson in behind the Athletic defence, the former Spireite cutting in to fire low towards the far corner, but Nicklin stretched to push his shot aside.
Frickley fired a warning shot in the 11th minute when Neil Towler turned on a cross from the left by Chris White to lift a shot narrowly wide.
But the opening goal deservedly went Matlock's way when LIAM KING glaned a peach of a header into the corner from a Hannah cross in the 16th minute. Within sixty seconds King nearly doubled his and Town's tally when after being found by Nathan Benger, he screwed inches wide from 15 yards.
Out of the blue though, Matlock were pegged back when they allowed CHRIS DAVIES far too much time to measure his shot from the right comprehensively past Nick Buxton, deputising for Adam Sollitt, out with a back spasm complaint. That 25th minute equaliser took the wind out of Matlock's sails and also led to a scrappy ending to the first half, not helped by referee Dave Benton who seemed intent on making himself the focus of attention. Frickley had slightly the better of things in this spell as Towler drove too high from 20 yards and Phil Lindley headed a Davies cross over the bar, while for Matlock Jackson shot directly at Nicklin in a route one move.
The South Elmsall side were quickly out of the blocks after the interval and when Towler forced his way past James Lukic on the by-line, it needed a last ditch challenge by Brough on Danny Clarke at the expense of the first of two corners to avert danger.Now it was Matlock having to defend stubbornly and Buxton did well to hold a teasing twenty yarder from Danny Walsh as Frickley piled on the pressure.
A swift counter attack saw Jackson speed down the left to cross long to the back post and skipper Dean Jones had to stretch to head away for a corner. The Matlock strikers though were living off scraps with the bigger Frickley defenders winning most of the battles as the ball was up in the air far too much. Hannah though was the victim of a questionable offside decision when Benger played him clear.
Ben Algar replaced Jackson midway through the half and after Towler had come within a whisker of scrambling in Lee Booth's low near post cross from the right, the pint sized winger started the move which should have seen Matlock sneak ahead against the run of the play in the 68th minute. He cut inside to feed Warne on the right who delivered an inch perfect cross which Benger headed powerully over from just six yards.
But Frickley came again with Chris White pulling the strings on the left flank. Clarke went down under challenge by Buxton with a corner being awarded but when Frickley finally got the goal they had been threatening on 71 minutes, Matlock were staring a fourth successive home defeat firmly in the face.
TOWLER burst through the centre to force his shot past Buxton with just nineteen minutes to go. But that lead lasted barely two minutes as Benger's flick through this time saw HANNAH legitimately clear. The finish was calm and precise, a neat clip over the advancing Nicklin, the ball landing sweetly in the far corner.
The scene was now nicely set for a late Matlock winner. It wasn't for the lack of trying on their part. Nicklin could only parry a King piledriver before Matlock came again with Featherstone ploughing down the left to see his fine cross turned behind.
Matlock then proceeded to strike the same post twice in ninety seconds as they looked to have rediscovered their earlier fluency. Algar, found by a tremendous forty yard cross field pass by Gareth Davies, pulled back a fine hanging cross which Warne headed on to the upright. Then from a Davies free kick, Nicklin managed the faintest of touches as Lukic's header suffered an identical fate.
Just to prove they were still a threat, Frickley won a corner as they broke upfield and former Gladiator Steve Heath nodded harmlessly wide when well placed.
Right at the death, Nicklin spilled a Davies shot but struck lucky as Matlock didn't follow up, before a jinking run from Algar ended with Nicklin this time making sure from a well struck daisycutter.
The negatives were that Matlock again were not altogether comfortable in defence and they became sloppy, thus offering Frickley, who were clearly second best early on, a foothold in the match. Positives were their unbeaten run being extended to five games in league and cup, more scoring joy for Ross Hannah, and determination to find a way back after going behind.
A draw then was probably fair, but if they could have built on their good start, and managed to finish off those late chances, then the extra two points would certainly have stayed at Causeway Lane.
MATLOCK TOWN: Buxton, Brough, Featherstone, King, Haran, Lukic, Warne, Davies, Jackson (Algar 65), Hannah, Benger. Other subs: Yates, Thorpe, Cartwright,
REFEREE: D Benton--Sheffield. ATTENDANCE: 333 STAR MAN: Liam King.
