AS A trainee doctor, Jamie Thoroughgood is well qualified to give an honest appraisal of Bashley’s current position.

Asked where he would put the club in medical terms, the skipper replied: “We are coming off the stroke ward and finding our feet. We are rehabilitating and are going to push forward from here.”

Thoroughgood, who is in the final year of his studies at University Hospital Southampton, was speaking after fellow strugglers Bash and Bishop’s Cleeve had both doubled their respective points tallies for the season following yesterday's eventful encounter in the New Forest.

The 22-year-old defender was returning to action having dislocated his shoulder during Bash’s 1-0 defeat at Fleet last month – an injury he was able to treat himself.

“I felt like the bionic man on the pitch today!” joked Thoroughgood. “I was wearing a big shoulder strap, like the one motocross riders use, and it really helped. I had a couple of lectures on dislocated shoulders recently so knew how to put them back in.”

This early-season relegation six-pointer pitted one of the biggest villages in Europe against one of the smallest, with Bash showing no signs of an inferiority complex as they took the contest to the men from Gloucestershire during the opening stages.

Beset by financial problems and player exoduses over the past 12 months, the two clubs have much in common, with their lowly league positions – only goal difference separates Bash from bottom-placed Cleeve – indicative of rebuilding following troubled times.

The teams also shared a host of presentable chances over the 90 minutes with a combination of excellent goalkeeping, especially from Bash’s Callum Maher, and errant finishing ensuring the clash would end with honours even.

Matt Oldring’s penalty, awarded after new signing Nuno Pereira, formerly of Sporting Lisbon, had been scythed down by Ben Robinson on the stroke of half-time, had put Bash on course for their first league victory in 22 games.

But having been reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Brad Morris midway through the second half, the hosts were unable to hold on and succumbed to an equaliser five minutes from time.

Morris, the only Bash player to remain at the club from last season, saw red after hauling back Cleeve substitute John Dodd, an infringement referee Dan Berry deemed to have taken place inside the penalty area from his vantage point some way from the incident.

Bash’s remonstrations were predictably futile before Maher righted what they perceived to have been a wrong when he kept out Harlie Price’s spot-kick with a stunning one-handed save.

Price, the only Cleeve first-teamer to remain at the club from last season, had the final say when he capitalised on some ponderous defending and grabbed a leveller to earn the visitors what was probably a deserved point.

Bash may beg to disagree having felt a first-half effort from Pereira had crossed the line after hitting the underside of the crossbar, although Cleeve may counter by pointing to another top-drawer save from Maher to deny Price a winner deep into stoppage time.

“We were by far the better side in the first half,” said Thoroughgood. “We started the second half slowly and went down to 10 men after being caught by one ball over the top. Callum made a great save from the penalty but we were under the cosh from then until the end. We were happy to take a point considering we played for 30 minutes with 10 men.”

Bash: Maher, Morris, Moore, Rose, Thoroughgood, Hall, Oldring, Kinley, Dugdale (Cullingford, 69), Pereira (Speechley-Price, 90), Brading. Unused subs: Dunne, Bosma.