A topsy-turvy encounter saw Hinckley AFC come from two goals down to lead 3-2, but in the end they had to settle for a point after a stoppage-time equaliser snatched a draw for Histon.
A flat first half saw Histon take a two-goal lead into the break, but Hinckley came out a different side after it and quickly turned the game on its head.
A Jared Bradshaw-inspired comeback saw him net twice, both from outside the box, before Lewis Rankin’s close-range finish looked to have earned Hinckley all three points until Histon levelled it up again deep into stoppage time.
On a bright afternoon that started to yield the first signs of spring on the opening day of March, both sides took time to settle into the game and it led to a first half in which goalmouth action was scarce.
Chandler Pegg had a downward header cleared off the line, but that was about as much as either side could muster up until the half hour mark, when Jay D’Lionga needlessly caught Luca Cardines in the box, and Joe Sutton scored the resulting penalty.
That gave the home side a boost, and they quickly doubled their lead. Keelan Fallows made a fine save to deny Cardines, but before the resulting corner was fully cleared, Max York acrobatically hooked home Histon’s second.
The biggest flashpoint of the first period came in stoppage time, when Ellis Leka’s high tackle caught D’Lionga just below the knee – but referee Oliver Hollyoak only deemed it a yellow, much to Histon’s relief, and that would prove pivotal later in the game.
With a hill to climb, Hinckley immediately looked an improved side after half time, although Zaki Evans had to block from Sutton on a break from the hosts early in the second half.
Hinckley got into good positions but couldn’t always find the final touch, and had their first sight of goal when Pegg looked to have been sent through, but tried to twist back past his man and was crowded out.
Just four minutes later, though, they did score – Bradshaw cut in from the left and whipped a deep cross/shot that caught out the keeper and nestled inside the far post.
Eight minutes later, Bradshaw was at it again. With Histon setting themselves for a free kick to be delivered into the box, Bradshaw caught them out with another magnificent strike into the top corner from just under 30 yards – his second free-kick in two weeks, and third stunner of 2025.
Now with all the momentum, Hinckley set about taking the lead for the first time. They had to remain alert at the back as Jasper Tetlow blocked from Matty Allan after a counter attack, but always looked the more likely to score again and did so with 12 minutes to play. Pegg found space in the left channel, and pulled one across the face of goal where Rankin tapped home his third in two away games.
Hinckley managed the next phase of play well, but as the game ticked into stoppage time they should have wrapped it up. Histon ‘keeper George Whitehall went up for a corner, but Hinckley cleared and broke forward and Pegg bore down on goal only to see his shot blocked on the line.
And what should have been 4-2 quickly became 3-3 – just three minutes later, two appeals for fouls on Calum Flanagan were both waved away by the referee as Hinckley half-cleared a free-kick, and the ball fell to Leka, who was once again the centre of attention at the end of a half as his shot flew threw a crowd of bodies to salvage a point for the hosts and leave Hinckley ruing what might have been.
Histon: George Whitehall, Charlie Black, Ellis Leka, Joe O’Neill, Max York, Luke Crisp, Connor Barnes, Tom Binder, Matty Allan (Pharrell Anderson 75), Joe Sutton, Luca Cardines (Taylor Franklin 72). Subs not used: Ollie Kirkup, Joe Bruce.
Goals: Joe Sutton (29 pen), Max York (37), Ellis Leka (93)
Hinckley: Keelan Fallows, Jay D’Lionga (Bryan Kohyrelon 78), Adam Barber, Lucinee Donzo (Oli Szymanski 72), Calum Flanagan, Lewis Rankin, Zaki Evans, Chandler Pegg, Jared Bradshaw, Luke Jones, Jasper Tetlow. Subs not used: Sam Belcher, Joe Obi, Keaton Blackbird.
Goals: Jared Bradshaw (60, 68), Lewis Rankin (78)
Attendance: 255
