EVEN the elements are conspiring against Bashley according to boss Paul Gazzard after watching his side fight their way to a 1-1 draw at Burnham.

In a match dictated by dreadful conditions at the Gore, Bash had to cope with a barrage of pressure after Josh Webb’s wind-assisted 25-yarder handed the hosts a third-minute lead.

Nicke Kebamba struck the post for Burnham before the interval but Bash rallied after the restart and built up a head of steam prior to a 15-minute delay amid the howling wind and driving rain.

When the action resumed, Bash eventually equalised through Dave Marden’s scrambled effort with 10 minutes to play.

And although Gazzard recognised his charges were second best in the first half, the joint-manager felt the enforced break in play was decisive as Bash were denied a much-needed maximum haul.

Gazzard told the Daily Echo: “They were freak weather conditions and the referee had little option because even the dugouts were starting to swing about in the wind, but that break really killed our momentum.

“It took us until the last 10 or 15 minutes to really get going again and while it was a fair result based on their first half display, we felt it was probably two points dropped after the week they have had.

“They lost a lot of players and were in a similar position to what we were a few weeks ago. We couldn’t have picked a better time to play them.

“We got stuck right into them in the second half and there was only one team likely to score. Having to stop took the wind out of our sails and it was a missed opportunity.”

Meanwhile, Gazzard added that dual-registered Jack Satterley could still have a future at Bashley, even though the striker last week gave Wessex League club Blackfield & Langley first call on his services.

“Declan Edwards will be out for a few weeks and I believe we still hold Jack’s Southern League registration so we will have to have a chat about what to do,” said Gazzard.

Bash: Jones, Blackmore (Brookes, 86), Roberts, Strickland, Marden, Kenna, Edwards (Bulpitt, 18), Soetan, Joyce, Odam, Davis (Flint, 73). Unused subs: Gazzard, George (g/k).