Presteigne St Andrews more than played their part in what was an entertaining pre-season friendly at Llanandras Park on Saturday, 27 July.
I have to admit I missed the first half due to other commitments, but by all accounts the hot weather played a part in the first half in which each side was to score twice.
Callum Matthews and Lee Sutton were on target for Presteigne who were given a stiff test by a very useful and competitive Ludlow side.
The second half started off at a fairly sedate pace – probably due to the heat of that first half – but gradually things began to pick up.
Nathan Hodge produced a fine free kick which Simon Hamer in the Presteigne goal did very well to tip over his own cross bar as the visitors looked to step things up a notch.
But it was Presteigne who were to score the fifth goal of the day and it was to be a strike that won applause from supporters of both sides in the very decent crowd at Llanandras Park.
Callum Matthews cut in from the left and hit a fierce drive across the visiting keeper and into the far corner of the Ludlow net for a stunning goal.
But Ludlow were not to be denied although their equaliser from a corner was something of a soft goal for Presteigne to concede – after the initial header was lost, nobody at the back was able to pick up the second ball and Ludlow bundled it home from close range to make it 3-3.
This was a very good test of a Presteigne side that, at times, played some excellent passing football and which looked to grow in confidence as the game went on.
There will be reaction from manager Danny Williams up online in the next 24 hours or so.