Diamonds secure Irish draw, Poppies pip Doughboys while Steelmen play out stalemate
AFC Rushden & Diamonds continued their pre-season preparation with a 2-2 draw against fellow Step 4 side MK Irish at Hayden Road on Friday.
The match came hot on the heels of their 2-0 defeat at National League North side Spalding United the previous Tuesday, and assistant boss Jim Le Masurier was pleased with the workout, if not the defending for the two goals conceded.
Diamonds fell behind early on before going 2-1 up thanks to an own goal and a Joel Nketia header, with Irish levelling things up before the break.
"Friendlies are there to get minutes into legs, and we certainly got that," Masurier told @AFCRDTV.
"We played two formations to try and get used to people's connections, and all in all it was a good workout for us.
"If it had been a league game we would be fuming with the two goals we conceded, as they were both avoidable and we were very lax in the first 10 or 20 minutes.
"But we then got to grips with it and were dominant.
"When we went 2-1 up I thought we took the foot off the gas a little bit and allowed them back in.
"It was a bit scrappy, there wasn't a lot of fluidity, and we were forcing passes at times, but that is what pre-season is for, to learn from these mistakes.
"We want people to try and be brave and make mistakes, and then learn from those and we will be better for that."
Diamonds are due back in action on Tuesday night when they host Biggleswade Town, while on Saturday they are on the road as they travel to Step 3 side AFC Stamford.
Kettering Town and Wellingborough Town met in a pre-season derby at Latimer Park on Friday night, with the Poppies emerging as 2-0 winners.
The Poppies are back in friendly action on Saturday when they Sky Bet Championship club Watford send a B team to Latimer Park (ko 3pm).
The Doughboys are back on the road at the weekend, as they go to Leighton Town (ko 3pm).
Corby Town got their pre-season campaign underway on Saturday, as they played out a 1-1 draw at Skegness Town.
The Steelmen took an early lead, but were quickly pegged back and that was how things stayed.
Leon Mettam's side are due to be on the road again on Tuesday as they go to Histon FC (ko 7.45pm), while on Saturday they travel to Lincoln United (3pm).