FC Isle of Man came from behind to preserve their current unbeaten run in the North West Counties Premier Division with a point from a topsy-turvy encounter with Pilkington.

Storm Bert looked to have put Saturday’s game in jeopardy, but the Ravens eventually made it to St Helens in time for a delayed kick-off against their opponents who started the day near the foot of the table.

Luke Booth got the Manx side off to the best possible start when he converted Jacob Crook’s second-minute cross.

Pilkington, however, soon responded and Ryan Beigan netted the equaliser at a well-worked corner.

The Ravens’ enjoyed several chances to regain their lead, but it was the hosts who netted next when Beigan grabbed his second of the match with a sensational finish.

Still reeling from Beigan’s fine strike, the islanders conceded a third almost straight from the restart when Andrew Starkey put the home side 3-1 up.

Paul Jones’s side made a great start to the second half and pulled a goal back when Charlie Higgins converted Kyle Watson’s centre into the Pilkington box with his shoulder.

FC Isle of Man pulled level in the 71st minute when replacement Adam Adebiyi broke the offside trap to tee up talisman Ste Whitley to restore parity to the match.

Smelling blood in the water, the Manx finished the game strongly and both Adebiyi and Higgins both went close to clinching a winner.

As it was though the Ravens had to settle for a point, stretching the side’s unbeaten run to seven games and keeping them in the division’s promotion play-off places.

Jones said after the match: ‘The last 10 minutes turned into a very open game as we looked for a winner.

‘I think we could have nicked it but after the day we have had travel-wise and being 3-1 down we will take a point.

‘There were some really good parts to our performance today, but we can’t keep giving the opposition a head start.

‘Coming back into games the way we have over the last two weeks says a lot about the qualities we have in the group but when we are on top we do need to keep playing in the right areas and make sure we are difficult to score against.

‘A point away from home is always decent in this league but we know we could have come home with all three today.’

Jones also had a word of praise for the Ravens’ supporters that braved the conditions to cheer on their side at the weekend. The former Rushen United manager said: ‘It was lovely to see the supporters who had braved the weather at the end.

‘They are a special bunch and we really appreciated their continued support.

‘Onward to AFC Liverpool.

‘It’s important we keep pushing and your support really does make that both easier to do and more likely to happen.’

The Ravens are back on the road this weekend, their games kicking off in Merseyside at midday on Saturday.