Kettering Town and Halesowen Town played to a 1-1 draw in a closely contested match on Saturday. Both goalkeepers, Kettering’s Paul White and Halesowen’s Dan Platt, made several key saves to maintain the deadlock throughout the game.

The visitors struck early, taking the lead within five minutes after a well-executed free kick exposed Kettering’s defence. Jason Cowley found himself unmarked and lobbed the ball over White to put Halesowen ahead. Despite conceding the early goal, Kettering controlled much of the possession for the remainder of the first half, but Halesowen remained dangerous on the counterattack. White was called into action to deny attempts from Jim Kellermann and Vanylson Silva.

Kettering came close to leveling the score midway through the first half when Eddie Panter’s close-range shot was parried by Platt. The goalkeeper then made another crucial save after Will van Lier’s follow-up effort was cleared off the line by a defender.

The second half saw Kettering increase their attacking intensity, with Theo Alexandrou testing Platt twice early on. The home side’s persistence paid off in the 75th minute when a corner taken by Lewis Coyle led to a scramble in the box. Panter’s shot was deflected into the net by Halesowen defender Dan Meredith, leveling the score.

Both teams continued to create chances as the match approached its conclusion. Halesowen’s best opportunity came three minutes after the equalizer when a blocked shot fell to Cowley, whose powerful drive was expertly saved by White. The game ended with neither side able to find a winner, leaving the points shared.