A GOAL less than four minutes from time denied Ely City a share of the spoils at Mildenhall on Tuesday.

Mildenhall Town 2

Ely City 1

A GOAL less than four minutes from time denied Ely City a share of the spoils at Mildenhall on Tuesday.

A hard-earned point looked almost certain for Ely after James Wallis cancelled out John Sands’ opener but, with mere minutes to go, Andrew Wood struck to ensure all three points went to the home side.

The loss sees Ely remain in 16th place ahead of Saturday’s clash with mid-table FC Clacton.

A flat opening period saw little from either side but the game exploded into life shortly after the 10 minute mark as Sands latched onto a header from strike partner Wood to race through and slot past keeper Lee Pacey.

Ely were undaunted however, and quickly redoubled their efforts, pulling level in the 38th minute as Mildenhall dropped deep.

A corner delivered into the near post was only partially cleared by the home defence and some alert work from Wallis afforded him space and time enough to drill the ball low past an unsighted goalkeeper.

Ely carried their momentum into the second half and enjoyed decent spells going forward without managing to create any clear cut opportunities.

Mildenhall began pushing hard as the match headed into its later stages and their persistence finally paid off in the 87th minute as striker Sands was sent through on goal from midfield and he managed to release Wood in support, with the latter slotting past Pacey.