You’ve got to start somewhere. The Red Team finally got off of zeroes when they battled the youngsters of Jahbat FC to a 2:2 draw on December 18. Jahbat had also gone into the match pointless, so the result still leaves both teams at the bottom of the Red Section, with Jahbat holding a slight edge in goal difference.

The Byki dominated possession for long stretches, finally looking comfortable as a unit for the first time in four outings. The Byki clattered the framework on a few occasions and slightly better marksmanship could have given them all three points.

After Jahbat went out to an early 1:0 advantage, the Byki came into the game by the middle of the first half. Josh Taylor walked the ball into the attacking third and crushed a shot from the top of the area that ricocheted off of the inside of the post.

The Byki leveled the score with 2:24 left. Jon Davit dribbled up the middle and dished to Todd Trowbridge on the left side of the box. Trowbridge’s shot deflected off of the sprawled goalie and squeezed in to make it 1:1. Mike Frantz nearly gave the Byki the lead 1:11 later, but the keeper made a nice block of his difficult shot.

Things got cranked up for the Byki to start the second half. Alex Safford blasted a shot off the crossbar and the rebound led to a Jahbat counterattack. Goalkeeper Paul McGuiness made a terrific save to keep things level.

Moments later, Davit played a tremendous through ball for Chris Wurst, who was alone in the area. The keeper made a fantastic save to stop Wurst, and then stoned him again just 0:20 later.

Jahbat turned the tables with 13:24 to go. A sloppy Byki turnover in their end of the field became Jahbat’s second goal. McGuiness had no chance to stop a hard shot from 30 feet.

But the Byki replied 2:10 later. Frantz dribbled along the boards on the left and slammed a pass off the back wall, leaving it perfectly for Bobby Safford in the middle of the area. Safford, fresh off a plane from Spain, made no mistake with a first-time shot.

The Byki kept pouring on the pressure for the final ten minutes, but could not find a way past the Jahbat goalie. He made five saves on shots from close range. “How did he do that,” was the question on everyone’s mind during all of those plays.

The Byki must now begin the work of climbing out of the Red Section cellar.

BYKI LINEUP
(2-2-1): McGuiness – Frantz, Taylor – Davit, Wurst – A. Safford. Bench: Flood, Hoeper, Klacko, Maloney, B. Safford, Samp, Trowbridge.

BYKI SCORING SUMMARY
1:1 – Trowbridge 1 (Davit ); 16:36
2:2 – B. Safford 1 (Frantz); 27:46.

BYKI MAN OF THE MATCH
Jon Davit