Margate produced a dramatic late comeback to earn a point against Deal Town in an entertaining 2-2 draw at The Charles Ground on Saturday afternoon.
Manager Ben Greenhalgh welcomed Lewis Knight back into the starting line-up in place of Ronnie Vint, as the ‘Gate looked to bounce back from midweek frustration after letting a 2-0 lead slip against Faversham Town.
The opening exchanges were largely uneventful, though Ibrahim Olutade came close to capitalising on a loose back pass when Deal goalkeeper James Tonkins’ clearance ricocheted off him, only for the ball to loop safely back into the keeper’s hands.
From there, the hosts took control. In the 19th minute, relentless attacking play saw Ben Chapman find space in the box before smashing past Tom Wray to give Deal a 1-0 lead. Moments later, Rory Smith forced Wray into a smart low save, and the home side continued to threaten on the counter.
Margate’s first-half struggles were compounded in the 32nd minute when the pace of Ife Oni proved too much for the Blues’ defence. The Deal forward raced through and finished confidently to double the advantage, leaving Margate 2-0 down at the break.
Greenhalgh reshuffled his side at half-time, bringing on Kane Haysman for Knight and introducing Reece Hobbs between the sticks after Wray was forced off through injury. The changes continued as Blu Husthwaite replaced Harrison Hatfull seven minutes into the second half.
Despite Deal still posing problems through Oni, Margate gradually began to find their rhythm. Around the hour mark, Jack Peters went close with an off-balance effort before Henry Young saw his shot superbly blocked. Encouraged, the visitors began to dominate possession, with Haysman and Max Walsh both testing the Deal defence.
However, injuries continued to plague the Blues as Louie Atkins—only recently introduced—was forced off after 15 minutes of action.
With 12 minutes remaining, Margate finally found a breakthrough. A deep cross was nodded down by Emmanuel Oke and finished by Haysman to make it 2-1 and set up a tense finale.
Just three minutes later, the visitors thought they had completed their comeback when Harry Hudson netted, but the celebrations were cut short by the assistant referee’s flag for offside. Greenhalgh himself then went close, seeing his effort blocked before Haysman fired the rebound over as Margate threw everything forward.
Deal almost sealed the win in the 85th minute when Jack Paxman’s curling strike struck the inside of the post and rolled across goal, much to Margate’s relief.
Deep into stoppage time, it looked as though the ‘Gate would fall just short—until the final moment of the match. A hopeful cross into the box caused chaos, and when the ball dropped kindly, Max Walsh pounced to slam home the equaliser in the 95th minute, sparking wild celebrations among the travelling fans.
The referee blew for full-time immediately after the restart, confirming a point from the most unlikely of positions.
Full-Time: Deal Town 2–2 Margate
Margate XI:
Wray (Hobbs 45’), Hatfull (Husthwaite 53’), Oke, Walsh, Knight (Haysman 45’), Hudson, Olutade, Greenhalgh, Peters (Atkins 60’) (Nkwocha 73’), Young, Garande
Goals:
Haysman (78’), Walsh (90+5’)
Attendance: 746
