Dean Pinnington’s second-half strike secured a 1-1 draw for FC Isle of Man on a frustrating afternoon away at Colne on Saturday.  

After back-to-back defeats in the North West Counties Premier Division standings, the Ravens went to Lancashire looking to get back on track. 

Both sides saw plenty of the ball early on, with Jefferson Goncalves de Abreu providing the biggest threat for Colne down their left. 

His early crosses were well dealt with by the central defensive pairing of Al Maitland and Jack McVey, while the contest between him and Ronan McDonnell - which the latter eventually got the better of - proved to be a key battle. 

The first real opening of the game arrived just after the half-hour mark as de Abreu’s cross picked out Keaton Mulvey, but his header was straight at Killey. 

The Ravens felt aggrieved not to have the lead at the break as Callum Sherry’s cross to Sean Doyle was knocked down to Adam Adebiyi before his effort was well saved. 

From the trio of corners that followed, Kyle Watson’s third deceived everyone and went straight in, only for referee Aron Connolly to rule it out claiming he’d seen a push in the middle, despite any real protest from the home side. 

The second half saw the hosts take the lead through Mulvey as he was left unmarked from a corner, his header took a deflection on the way past Killey to make it 1-0. 

That goal seemed to spark a new energy in the Ravens, with Doyle seeing his effort blocked as Ste Whitley and Dean Pinnington caused issues. 

Pinnington grabbed the equaliser, his first of the season, as Doyle brought down a long ball. From there Baines and Whitley did well to keep possession, finding the winger who beat his man and fired into the near corner for 1-1. 

The introduction of Charlie Higgins and Danny Gerrard brought a new emphasis to the Ravens’ attack, with both going close in their efforts to find a winner. 

As Higgins tormented the Colne back line, Gerrard went closest as Pinnington’s flick set him in but his effort hit the bar. 

With the clock on 85 minutes, Higgins’s outrageous skill saw him bring the ball down and advance on goal, but his dinked effort dropped just wide. 

Having made such an impact, Higgins was sent for an early shower by referee Connolly for an alleged stamp on the Colne right-back, leaving the Ravens down to 10 for the final moments. 

Despite that, the last real chance fell the way of Paul Jones’s side as substitute Ben Wosser chased down a flick on and did enough to get it past Best, with the Colne keeper forced to bring him down, ensuring both sides ended the game with 10 men.  

The Ravens were unable to capitalise on the free-kick that followed as Pinnington drove it straight into the wall, ensuring the game ended 1-1. 

 - FC Isle of Man’s next game is tomorrow evening (Tuesday) away at Prestwich Heys before a home game against Bury on Saturday evening.

 SAM TURTON