Penybont 0 TNS 0

THE New Saints dropped league points for the first time since the opening weekend of the season as stubborn Penybont battled out a goalless stalemate at the SDM Glass Stadium on Saturday evening.

The Oswestry side began the brighter with Danny Redmond blasting wide while league top scorer Declan McManus headed straight at goalkeeper Alex Pennock during the opening minutes,

The home side restricted the Saints for much of the half with Ryan Brobbel and Jon Routledge both carving openings but failing to test Pennock.

Penybont enjoyed their best of the game during the opening 10 minutes of the second-half before the Saints threatened themselves with Redmond blasting over from close range with McManus also heading over.

Home manager Rhys Griffiths saw red and banished to the stands by referee David Morgan on the hour before TNS rang the changes with Ben Clark and Adam Wilson introduced in a bid to unlock the stubborn home defence.

Chris Marriott's free-kick was met by McManus who once again failed to test Pennock eight minutes from time before Brobbel fired wide in injury time as the Saints made the long trip home frustrated but still seven points clear at the top of the JD Cymru Premier table.

PENYBONT: Pennock, Little, A Evans, M Davies, Georgievsky (Clutton 70), Wood, Whitmore, Reffell (Snaith 70), Yorwerth, Borge, MacDonald (Reynolds 74). Subs: Kelland, Sylvester, Tweedy, Carson.

TNS: Roberts, Marriott, Astles, Routledge, Daniels, Brobbel, McManus, Redmond (Clark 70), Cieslewicz (Wilson 66), Smith (D Williams 84), D Davies. Subs: Simpson, Baker, Canavan, Dafydd.