A much-changed Chesterfield side drew 0-0 with Basford this week.
Three points would have seen either side go two points clear of the U19 National League.
With both teams coming away with a point to draw level at the top of the table, Basford will be the happier of the two sides as Chesterfield had the majority of the possession and chances.
Chesterfield once again showed dominance out wide, which has come straight from the training ground. Switches from Joe Shaw and Charlie Reece opened up the Ambers’ back line, allowing multiple opportunities to test the Basford keeper.
In the opening stages , the Blues controlled the game. Ewan McGawn had the biggest chance of the half when a header from centre-half Oli Baines fell to him. McGawn’s shot, through an abundance of bodies, was cleared off the line.
Douglas Woodhouse-Roe’s side went into the changing room on top of the clash, but just missing that final third quality.
Spectators were given a much quieter second half as Basford changed their formation to nullify the Spireites’ wide threats, however Town still dominated much of the ball.
Basford got their big chance to take the lead when the number nine smashed the crossbar from close range, giving young keeper Seth Cheeseman a moment of relief.
On the hour-mark, Cheeseman denied the Basford number nine once again as they found themselves one v one. Chesterfield answered back by going up to the other end of the pitch, where midfielder McGawn smashed the ball a yard wide of the far corner.
The final ten minutes of the game was filled with stoppages, with Reece and Qu’ran Raynor on the wrong side of some questionable challenges. A penalty shout also occurred when midfielder Gabriel Thorpe was hacked down in the 18-yard box with minutes to go, however the ref thought very little of the situation as play continued.
With Basford throwing everything at the final minutes, Chesterfield saw the game out to earn a point in Nottingham. On reflection, it was a fair result in a tight and even top of the table clash.
Waterman’s Man of theMmatch was awarded to first year goalkeeper Cheeseman. Though he did not have much to do, when called upon he kept the Blues in the game and was excellent throughout.
The draw now sees Alfreton, Basford and Chesterfield all level on points at the top of the table with six games played. The fixture list gives the young Spireites a break from league action, as they travel to Solihull Moors next week in the cup.
Spireites: Cheeseman, Aka, Baines, Reece(C), Shaw (Thorpe 80), Robinson (Page 46), Gillen (Hardy 65), McGawn (Courtney-Farrelly 55), Bedford, Hinman (Raynor 55), Cancello.
By Oli Baines