Comag Matamata Swifts recorded their first draw of the season on Saturday after being held 1-1 at the Domain by visitors Taupo.

With a top two spot still a realistic proposition Matamata began brightly against a Taupo side that had also come to play. The slick conditions produced an open encounter but neither could find the back of the net during the first half. Having said that, the Swifts did score when Glen Carmichael nipped in front of the keeper to fire home but the ‘goal’ was inexplicably ruled out.

Matamata also missed an open goal from a header, while Chris Walker grazed an upright during the first half. Taupo also hit an upright, which was the closest they came from the good number of chances they created.

Reuben Wigelsworth opened the scoring ten minutes into the second half when he rifled home from outside the box, but Matamata’s hard earned lead was thrown away ten minutes later. The Swifts failed to deal with a routine long ball and Taupo slid the ball home from the resulting scramble.

Half chances continued to come at both ends but neither side quite had the quality to win the game.

Richardson Racing Stables Swifts Reserves won their penultimate game of the season; a deserved 4-3 victory over Te Puke United. In a game moved to Matamata College due to the weekend’s weather, top scorer, Ram Singh, ensured the reserves were level at one apiece at half time, before a back and forth second half. Finn Challis pushed the reserves in front after half time, then the visitors levelled. Further goals from Harry Conner and Lawrence Clothier gave Matamata a seemingly insurmountable lead, but the visitors struck late on to keep them honest.

The Swifts A team also got amongst the goals in their final match of 2017. While they ended up on the wrong end of a 6-3 scoreline against the visiting Eastern City side, the A team contributed to an open and entertaining match that kept the sizeable fan base interested to the end. Hayri Cihan scored twice and was joined on the score sheet by Dan Holmes as the team pushed their higher ranked opponents hard.