Bucks winger Sean Evans on the ball leaving former Telford favourite Indy Khela, now playing for Solihull Moors, grounded

After a third Blue Square North game without a goal, it doesn’t take a genius to work out where AFC Telford United’s main problem is right now.

Solihull Moors arrived at the New Bucks Head on the back of a five-game winning run, and the Bucks did at least manage to call a halt to that.

But they could so easily have registered a valuable victory had their quality in the final third of the field been a little better.

The visitors finished this game with 10 men after full-back Ryan Amoo was given his marching orders late on for a foolhardy shove on Liam Blakeman.

Against that backdrop, they would doubtless have been satisfied to pick up a point.

But their goalkeeper Danny Crane was not forced into a save all afternoon as Telford struggled to get decent deliveries into he box.

It’s a far cry from a month ago, when they went on a prolific run of 18 goals in just five games.

That prolific run dried up following the injury to forward Steve Thompson, testament perhaps to the influence he was exerting in his role behind the front two.

And there was no hiding the sense of disappointment in the home camp as they missed out on the chance to jump up into the play-off places.

“It’s two points dropped really and it’s so frustrating – the whole season’s so frustrating,” said Blakeman, who was named the sponsors’ man of the match.

“We created opportunities but we didn’t make their keeper work once.

“We’ve just got to start again, go to Hyde next week and make sure we pick up the three points – but we know this one was frustrating for the fans as well as ourselves.”

Defender Shane Killock scuffed a shot across the face of goal eight minutes in, but it was Solihull who went closest to breaking the deadlock.

Telford keeper Ryan Young spilled a floated free-kick from Junior English at the feet of prolific striker Simon Johnson on 26 minutes, and he must have been preparing to celebrate when he unleashed a powerful drive.

But the effort cannoned into the post and rebounded back into the hands of the stunned, but rather relieved, Young.

At the other end, Jon Adams wasted the Bucks’ best chance as he blazed over from just outside the six-yard box after being teed up by Blakeman.

Telford also had loud appeals for a penalty in first half injury-time when Andy Brown tussled with Moors defender Theo Streete, but the referee saw no infringement.

The Bucks played their best stuff at the start of the second half and created a string of scoring opportunities – but wasted the lot by failing to make Crane work.

Blakeman unleashed a sweet strike just seconds after the re-start which whistled just wide and substitute Phil Trainer – who had come on at the interval for Kevin O’Connor – then blasted over from 30 yards.

Danny Carey-Bertram and Brown both headed over as the chances continued to come, but Telford increasingly looked like they were running out of ideas.

The introduction of Sean Evans off the bench did give them a lift in the final 20 minutes, and there was another twist as a result of Amoo’s moment of madness that reduced Solihull to 10 men.

But the Bucks could not capitalise, Brown heading over off a corner deep into injury-time to spurn the last chance of snatching victory.

“The confidence has been knocked out of us again, all the lads are feeling absolutely dead,” added Blakeman.

“We played well against Wolves reserves last Tuesday – I know that was only a friendly, but we got a lot of confidence out of it.

“On Saturday we started well but we didn’t take our chances and you could see that confidence draining away.

“But we’re still in (the play-off race) so we just have to believe in ourselves and keep plugging away.”

By Chris Hudson