Image by Tom Poole
The Minstermen drew 1-1 against Dagenham & Redbridge at the LNER Community Stadium in the Vanarama National League on Saturday afternoon.
York were held to a point despite falling behind initially, with neither side able to kick on and take all three points from each other in what was a cagey second half.
Neal Ardley made changes to the side which were turned over by Dorking in the week, with Paddy McLaughlin and Lenell John-Lewis coming in for Dan Batty and Billy Chadwick.
Josh Rees sent an early warning message from the visitors inside the opening minute, prodding an early chance wide from close range.
City quickly returned the favour a minute later with Dipo Akinyemi having a shot blocked, before a scramble and tame shot concluded in a save by Elliot Justham.
The deadlock was broken after just 11 minutes at the LNER Community Stadium as Daggers’ Jake Hessenthaler nodded in his team’s first corner.
Freddie Sears blew a golden opportunity to double up the Daggers’ lead in the 14th minute, slotting wide from a handful of yards out after cross found him,
Callum Howe then read the attacking move, which ended at the near post with Sears, as the defender stuck out a flying leg to block the effort.
Adam Crookes then saw his effort headed off the line in the 21st minute by a Daggers defender, after initially rising highest and beating ‘keeper Elliot Justham.
The game soon turned into a cagey affair, with neither side producing any moments of note.
Ryan Fallowfield popped up with the equaliser just before the interval, connecting on Danny Amos’ pinpoint cross to slot home.
City began the second half looking to take the game, as Dagenham fall into defensive rigidity.
Back-to-back corners popped up for the Minstermen in the 56th minute, with Callum Howe and Will Smith’s effort drawing blank.
The Daggers popped up with half a chance in the 73rd minute after some neat work around York’s area. Ryan Hill’s shot from the edge of the area flicked off the Minstermen’s defence.
The resulting corner was then crashed off the crossbar, as the connecting header pinged up and over for Dagenham.
Smith quite nearly pulled off a worldie of a strike in the 80th minute, producing a flick with his controlling touch before volleying narrowly over the bar.
Dagenham had one last chance just before the full time whistle when George Sykes-Kenworthy wiped out the attacker – but the freekick was a routine save for the City shot-stopper.
YORK CITY: Sykes-Kenworthy, Fallowfield, Crookes, McLaughlin, Akinyemi (43’ Davies), John-Lewis ©, Howe, Barnes (75’ Chadwick), Amos, Woodyard (75’ Batty), Smith.
UNUSED SUBS: Duckworth, Kennedy.
DAGENHAM & REDBRIDGE: Justham ©, Tavares, Eastman (66’ Phipps), Vincent, Rees, Hill, Pereira (82’ Johnson), Ling, Appiah-Forson, Sears (67’ Kedwell).
UNUSED SUBS: Remy, Lawless.
ATTENDANCE: 4,177 (104 Dagenham & Redbridge supporters)
WAITROSE MAN OF THE MATCH: Ryan Fallowfield
