BANBURY had to battle hard for a share of the British Gas Business Southern League Premier Division points in aphysical goalless draw against unbeaten Merthyr at Penydarren Park on Saturday.

The referee was kept busy throughout, with Merthyr winning the yellow card count 4-1.

Banbury's strike force of Howard Forinton and debutant Jermaine McSporran - the latter signing from Kidlington on Friday night - found it difficult to penetrate the defensive partnership of Gareth Phillips and Gareth Warton.

It was a similar story at the other end, where the Martyrs proved ineffective against the returning Matt Hayward and the experience of Kieran Sullivan, as the home side struggled to improve their poor goalscoring record of eight goals in seven games.

Goalkeeper Alan Judge made a couple of good saves in the first half, but Merthyr never really threatened much.

However, the home side had a let-off in the 44th minute when McSporran, the former Wycombe Wanderers striker, went close with a shot which went a few inches over the bar with Ashley Morris well beaten in the Martyrs' goal.

The second half saw the home side raise the physical element to their game to an even higher pitch, and the referee struggled to maintain control.

One incident midway through the half saw Judge and the home pair of Craig Steins and Paul Keddle all receive yellow cards following a flurry of flying fists.

They were lucky not to see red, and that was the case twice more later in the game when Judge was floored in challenges after catching and hanging on to the ball.

The referee failed to punish the perpetrators on both occasions.

United missed the heading power and all-round aggression of the injured Andy Baird, and home keeper Morris did not have a on-target effort to deal with for the whole of the 90 minutes.

Despite that, a draw was a fair reflection of the game, and both sides must have been satisfied with a point each.

For Banbury, George Redknap had an outstanding match, while Stuart Bridges enjoyed his best game for a long time, helping to take pressure off the defence.

Banbury: Judge, Blossom, Kinch, Sullivan, Hayward, Pond, Bridges, Redknap, Forinton, McSporran (Stanbridge 83), Gardner. Subs not used: Nicholls, Szczukiewicz, Barisic.

Attendance: 464.