Bridgwater praise for Doughboys as Kettering Town are denied late on at the Dog & Duck
Joint boss David Bridgwater was full of praise for Wellingborough Town after his Kettering Town side were held to a 2-2 draw by their lower level county rivals in the Emirates FA Cup on Saturday.
It was Step 4 hosting Step 3 as the Poppies made the short trip to the Dog & Duck and played their part in a thrilling end-to-end encounter.
Lloyd Buckby fired the home side into a deserved lead in the first half before Kettering his back strongly after the break.
Eddie Panter equalised on 63 minutes before Harvey Peters looked to have won it for the Poppies with an 84th-minute header.
But the Doughboys refused to lie down, and Rhys Kelly popped up with a dramatic last-minute equaliser to secure the draw and set up a replay at Latimer Park on Tuesday night (ko 7.45pm).
The result means both sides remain unbeaten this season, and Bridgwater admitted a stalemate was probably the right outcome.
"In the first half we weren't good enough, and fair play to Wellingborough I thought they played some good football and put us under a lot of pressure," said the Poppies joint boss.
"In saying that, in the first 10 minutes Eddie Panter has got through a couple of times and he usually finishes those.
"In the second half we said we needed to be better.
"We changed the shape, changed the personnel and I think we put up a good fight in the second half.
"We got the goal through Pants and we are in the ascendancy then.
"Harvey (Peters) then scores with a great header and I thought we were going to hold out.
"It was a set-piece, and the lads are all saying one of the Wellingborough lads is literally holding Paul White's hands so he can't move, and the lad has got in there and got a free header.
"That's the FA Cup for you, it could have been 5-5 and nobody could have complained.
"I said to the lads we can't be too disappointed because we have a big job to do on Tuesday.
"Obviously the plan wasn't to have a replay, the plan was to jump into the next round, but credit where credit is due and I thought Wellingborough were good.
"We have now seen them, we know what to expect, and our boys can definitely raise their levels and it will be a different game on Tuesday I think."
Quotes courtesy of Peter Short