Banbury hit the road again for their second away fixture on the trot, buoyed by Saturday’s 4-1 triumph at Bishop’s Stortford, the Puritans first league win since 20th September. A Connor Ferguson hat-trick and a goal from Chris Wreh ended a tough run of results and gave Banbury a timely lift. The difficult spell in question had left the Puritans sitting 18th in the table, whilst St Ives occupy 11th, off the back of a massive away victory against Spalding.
The Puritans started the game vibrantly, with Ferguson, full of confidence with four goals in his last two, immediately on the front foot down the right flank and forcing an early save.
The hosts consistently set out to play long balls over the top, targeting the flanks to deliver crosses, but Banbury’s back line remained vigilant and kept the Ives’ from playing their style of football without interruption. One long ball did find Theo Alexandrou in behind, who squared for Liam Cross, but Flanagan was on hand to clear the resulting danger off the line.
St Ives enjoyed spells of patient possession, though Banbury pressed well, forcing mistakes and looking increasingly confident in the final third. 17 minutes into the half, McCreadie spotted Ollie Taylor off his line for a clever, near missed dink.
The Puritans were enjoying the better chances on goal, with their best opportunity coming in the 20th minute. Worley had the ball high up the left flank and found Prosser behind him, whipping in a superb ball which found Wreh, whose header went agonisingly close.
The game remained end to end as the half drew to a close, but the Ives found the breakthrough in additional time. Breaking down the left flank, Theo Alexandrou beat his man before delivering the ball into the box for Liam Cross, who beat Harding to give the hosts a 1-0 lead before the break. A perfectly timed goal, but perhaps a scoreline which failed to accurately represent a half of football which saw Banbury with the better chances.
The second half continued in the same, highly entertaining manner. Early into proceedings, Worley whipped a ball in from the left, resulting in a scrappy melee as Banbury bodies crowded in the Ives’ area; the effort ultimately ends in the keeper’s hands.
Misery struck again for Banbury as the hosts extended their lead in the 50th minute, as St Ives earned themselves a penalty. The skipper, Michael Richen, made no mistake from the spot, sending Harding the wrong way to make it 2-0.
Banbury continued to push forward in search of a way back into the game, but St Ives’ defence held firm. Both Flanagan and Abimbola had attempts denied, as Banbury struggled to turn their possession into clear-cut chances, with a lack of precision in both long balls and crosses leaving them unproductive.
At the 68th minute, Banbury brought in Anker and Lawson for Wreh and Ball, injecting attacking impetus which paid off by the 73rd minute, which saw Abimbola and Flanagan combine well and get the ball into the box. The ball was struck by Prosser, but clawed off the line by Ollie Taylor, not without the controversy of whether the ball may have crossed the line.
In the 86th minute, Banbury earned themselves a penalty which was struck down the middle by Ferguson, making it 5 goals in 3 appearances for the forward, and closing the gap to within one.
With time running out, Ofosu found himself leading the line, weaving through the defence and creating enough space to fire a well-struck effort, but Ollie Taylor pulled off a fantastic save to secure three points.
A disappointing result for Banbury, coming so close to a point away from home, but not a defeat without positives. With a home match against Quorn on the horizon Saturday, the Puritans will look to take a sore loss on the chin today, and return to winning ways.

Thank you Adam Coward for this match report.