Either side could have won this even contest and Chard would have won, but for a double save at close range by the visitors' keeper thwarting both an initial shot by Alfie Baker-Pike and his follow up.

Minehead started the more positively and, for the first quarter hour, Chard struggled to match them. When the visitors' Number 91 evaded his marker in the D and squeezed a shot past Tony Millet to open the scoring, it was no more than they deserved. However, they failed to build on their early advantage and Chard grew into the game from that point on. Having created some promising chances with a steadily increasing share of possession, they missed a golden opportunity to get back on level terms when Alan Cheffey slid the ball invitingly across the face of the Minehead goal, with no-one able to apply the finishing touch. The deserved equaliser came in the final couple of minutes of the first half, a fierce ball into the D by Gary Wheaton being touched on by Cheffey for Archie Parris to chip in from a couple of yards out.

The second half ebbed and flowed in terms of who held the upper hand but, for much of it, Chard's back four of Elliot Webb, Simon Green, Nigel Parris and Steve Mahoney coped well with Minehead's attacking forays and gave good protection to Millet. Late on, Millet himself made a couple of crucial interceptions, diving at the feet of forwards and smothering the ball in goal mouth scrambles while at the other end Baker-Pike's double effort was the pick of Chard's chances for taking all three points.

There was another assured performance from Paul Bradshaw in an unfamiliar outfield role, Archie Parris was a constant threat along the right wing and newcomer Noah Green showed plenty of commitment in the heart of midfield.

Thanks to umpires Ben Larcombe and James Spurdle

Squad: T Millet, E Webb, N Parris, S Mahoney, , S Green, G Wheaton (capt), N Green, A Cheffey, L Brown, P Bradshaw, A Baker- Pike, N Bradshaw, A Parris.