Devonshire Cougars 1

Somerset Trojans 1

Somerset Trojans moved to the top of the Premier Division after they drew with Devonshire Cougars at Devonshire Recreation Club last night.

Damon Swan’s strike midway through the second half cancelled out Alanzo Parsons’s header to leave the two clubs sharing the spoils. The result sends Trojans past Dandy Town with 23 points, with Cougars third on 21.

“I’m highly disappointed as we lacked focus for the whole game and in the end we got what we deserved,” Dennis Brown, the Cougars coach, said. “We made a silly error in the build-up to the goal, and the goal itself, and that’s what happens when you switch off.”

In a match that both sides needed to win to put pressure on Dandy Town, who play Wolves tomorrow, both came out looking to assert.

The visiting side had the better of the opening exchanges and carved out the first chance of the night in the fifteenth minute when striker Deunte Darrell found Swan with a chip into the area.

Swan, however, failed to find the net at the Cougars near post with his right-footed flick, much to the relief of the home supporters.

Cougars had the next opportunity in front of goal, but Kwame Steede watched in agony as Shaquille Bean, the Trojans goalkeeper, pushed over his curling 20-yard effort

Parsons’s goal three minutes into the second half was just what the match needed, as both sides conjured good scoring opportunities without making them count.

Coming up from the back for a corner, the defender rose highest to meet Kwame Steede’s effort and steer it past Bean.

Cougars striker Mark Steede thought he had doubled the home side’s advantage when he nodded home a Demitri Daniels chip that went over Bean’s head. But his joy soon turned to disbelief with the realisation that the offside flag had gone up.

Both the goal and the offside decision sprang Trojans into life and they sent wave after wave of attacks into the Cougars half looking for the all-important equaliser.

Midfielder Sean Brangman went close from six yards after Tre Harvey drove a cross into the area from the right flank. Kiosi Trott, the Cougars goalkeeper, however, was in the right place to save.

Trojans would be level midway through the second half when Swan’s free kick took a deflection off the Cougars wall, with referee Leroy Wilson awarding the goal to the striker.

Both teams threw men forward looking for the winning goal in the final minutes, but a draw was probably the just result and serves as a teaser for next Friday when they meet in the FA Cup quarter-finals at the same venue.