Sunday, May 7, 2006

Hereford United were dealt two dollops of luck as they held Morecambe to a lively 1-1 draw in the Con-ference play-off semi-final first-leg.

Shrimps skipper Jim Bentley gave the Lancastrians a half-time lead following a blunder by Bulls goalkeeper Wayne Brown.

But Rob Purdie restored parity with a 53rd minute penalty, giving United the edge ahead of Thursday night's Edgar Street return.

But Morecambe were furious over referee Richard Hewitt's spot-kick decision, given for a suspected handball against Fraser McLachlan despite few protests from United.

Hewitt further angered home fans when he disallowed a 'goal' from Michael Twiss for off-side, as television cameras proved the striker was level with United's defence.

United started brightly and teenager Williams almost gave his side the perfect start, but side-footed Simon Travis' perfect cross wide.

The Shrimps soon gained momentum and took the lead after a poor mistake from on-loan Brown.

Attempting to punch clear Twiss' corner, Brown flapped and miscalculated, allowing Bentley to head home at the back post.

Stansfield slashed wide from a tight angle as United strived for a quick response, while at the other end, a mis-cued cross from chief-tormentor Twiss floated narrowly wide.

Moments before half-time, Morecambe goalkeeper Steven Drench kept out Williams with a superb one-handed save.

United came out strongly in the second-half and equalised from the controversially-awarded spot-kick. Purdie kept his cool to beat Drench in front of Hereford's 1,100 travelling supporters.

Craig Stanley's 25-yard effort whistled past the top corner and Williams headed over from six yards as United piled on the pressure.

Morecambe survived and were left to curse the disallowed goal.

Hereford: Brown, Green, Travis, Mkandawire, Stansfield (Fleetwood 81), Ferrell, Stanley, Williams (Ipoua 83), Jeannin, Purdie, Beckwith. Attendance: 5,028.