Rai Simons will be looking to make a scoring impact at Ilkeston after forcing his way back into the first-team picture.

Simons, 18, came on as a second-half substitute for the third successive match in Ilkeston’s 2-2 draw away to Nantwich Town last weekend, and almost struck a late winner with a header that hit the crossbar.

The Bermuda striker missed another late opportunity to earn his side a victory, with his manager, Kevin Wilson, admitting that he expected a player of Simons’s ability to convert at least one of the two chances.

“We never turned up in the first half,” Wilson said. “We talked about moving the ball from side to side because their wingers like to pay high and wide, and our first goal was a good one.

“We made four or five passes across the pitch before scoring, but we just seem to have dips in concentration every now and again — and it cost us in the end.

“We were a lot better in the second half and both teams could have won it in the end.

“Rai Simons had two good chances in the closing stages and I believe a player of his calibre should have taken one.”

A second-half equaliser from Joe Maguire was enough to earn Ilkeston a point against Nantwich, leaving Wilson’s side twelfth in the Evo-Stik League Northern Premier.

Ilkeston took the lead in the tenth minute through Matt Richards, but Nantwich equalised when Aaron Burns converted from a penalty.

The home side won another penalty on the half-hour mark, but goalkeeper Ross Etheridge, who is on loan from Sky Bet Championship side Derby County, denied Burns his second with a low save to his right.

Nantwich went ahead six minutes later through Steve Foster before Maguire levelled for Ilkeston in the second half with a close-range finish.

Nigel Harrop, the Ilkeston general manager, said Simons had looked sharp since rejoining the first team and believed he was firmly in Wilson’s first-team plans.

“Rai’s looking strong, fit and a real handful at the moment,” Harrop said. “The Ilkeston coaching staff have high hopes for him.”

Simons, who signed a two-year contract with the Derbyshire-based side last summer, was arguably Ilkeston Academy’s most impressive performer this season, helping the team to the second round of the FA Youth Cup where they lost 1-0 to Accrington Stanley.

The academy also reached the Football Conference Alliance Cup semi-finals, suffering heartache in a penalty shoot-out against Maidstone United last week.

Ilkeston, who have a partnership with Bermuda Hogges, added Roger Lee, the Bermuda defender, to their first-team squad last week. Lee, formerly of Robin Hood, joins compatriots Antwan Russell, Lejaun Simmons and Simons at the club, who host Matlock Town this weekend.