Guiseley 3
Workington 3
Guiseley needed an equaliser from young substitute Kevin Newhouse in the final minute of injury time to avoid defeat at home by an impressive Workington side who belied their UniBond Division One position.
Guiseley clawed back a two goal deficit in the final 20 minutes to share the points.
There had been doubts whether the match would take place but hard work from club officials and volunteers meant that the game was played on a pitch covered in snow, with the touchlines marked out with blue paint and four fluorescent green balls bought especially for the match.
When the impressive Ryan Senior put the home side ahead after just four minutes, the Nethermoor faithful were confident of a repeat of their last home performance, when Lincoln United were defeated after an impressive start by Guiseley.
However the lead lasted only three minutes before Dave Henry brought down Workington's Darren Wilson in the penalty area and Graham Goulding slotted in the penalty to bring the scores level.
Much of the first-half was scrappy and there was very little creative play in midfield from either side.
Both sides appeared nervous, with the Workington centre-back Johnson clipping a Nicky Hey cross just over his own crossbar, and poor clearances from John Lamb putting his defence under pressure.
As the half wore on, the Workington midfield took control of the match, and they took a deserved lead when Matty Lea scored from Wilson's cross in the 44th minute. Only a superb save from Lamb a minute later prevented Guiseley going in two goals behind at the interval.
David Cooke was brought on at half-time to replace Peter Sumner and his industrious performance was far more convincing than most of his team mates.
Workington continued to look dangerous on the counter attack, and increased their lead on 58 minutes when Lea finished well to score his second.
The turning point of the game came when Kevin Newhouse replaced the disappointing Guiseley skipper Matt Daly on 63 minutes. The youngster's pace caused the visitors problems.
Guiseley began to put pressure on the Workington goal, and Nicky Hey scrambled the ball in from a melee of players following a good cross from Newhouse.
Guiseley created a succession of half chances, with Newhouse hitting the crossbar and Senior having a couple of shots well saved by the Workington goalkeeper.
Workington continued to look threatening on the break, and Lamb had to make some crucial saves to keep Guiseley in the match.
The referee gave four minutes of added time much to the surprise of most of the crowd but they had no complaints when Newhouse secured a point Guiseley did not really deserve with the final attack of the match.
l On Saturday Guiseley entertain Matlock Town (3 pm) and the Reserves visit Leigh RMI.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article