Ten-man Prestatyn Town denied victory by late Gresford Athletic leveller

A physical confrontation between the two Huws Gray Alliance rivals ended 1-1 and all-square, despite Neil Gibson’s men playing the second half at a disadvantage following a red card for influential striker Ian Griffiths.

The result leaves the Seasiders’ sitting comfortably in eighth spot with five games remaining ahead of their next outing at Conwy Borough on Friday (7.30pm).

A bright start from the home side saw Oli Buckley fire over after five minutes following good work from James Hay, before a neat piece of individual skill from Ben Maher carved another opening with 17 gone, but the former Caernarfon Town forward curled his effort wide.

Steve Halliwell’s side were making their presence felt with plenty of robust challenges that saw a number of players go into the book, but they were looking dangerous in the middle of the park thanks to the overall quality of Jack Chaloner.

Griffiths forced away stopper Ben Jones into a smart stop on 33 minutes after some good approach play from Casey Faulkner, Athletic were handed a golden chance to open the scoring in the closing stages when they were awarded a penalty.

They were unable to take advantage as Jordan MacCarter’s tame effort was diverted by Ryan Roberts, but there was still time for more drama which arrived right on the whistle when Griffiths was dismissed after he was adjudged to have elbowed a defender following an aerial challenge.

This did not deter the Seasiders’ after the break, and they went ahead on 55 minutes when a Maher corner was turned into the net from close range by Buckley.

The away side almost levelled on 59 minutes when a thumping MacCarter effort crashed off the bar, and Buckley was denied a second at the other end when his effort was hacked off the line.

With the game heading into the dying moments, the hosts’ finally wilted under the pressure as Chaloner prodded home from close range on 88 minutes after his initial strike as blocked by Aaron White.