Championship strugglers Bolton Wanderers scored a late equaliser to deny Eastleigh, the only non-League side left in the FA Cup, a famous third-round win this afternoon at the Silverlake Stadium.
There were concerns that the match would not go ahead due to the boggy nature of the pitch, but it was given the go-ahead an hour and a half before kickoff.
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Heavy rain teemed down for most of the first half and it was National League side Eastleigh that started far better as Bolton struggled in difficult conditions.
Yemi Odubade, who had to go off injured later in the first half, had the clearest opening when he fired over from 18 yards in the 12th minute as winger Jai Reason caused Bolton's backline all sorts of problems.
As the half wore on, Bolton began to see more of the ball and Wellington Silva and Dean Moxey both tested Eastleigh keeper Ross Flitney with a pair of fizzing low drives.
The Trotters came out after half time and appeared to have the momentum until the Silverlake Stadium erupted when Bolton defender Dorian Dervite diverted Reason's cross into his own goal.
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Bolton came close to an instant equaliser as Flitney tipped wide Darren Pratley's effort, but then Eastleigh had a strong spell, with James Constable denied before Reason's shot that squirmed under Ben Amos was cleared off the line by David Wheater.
Those misses would prove costly for the hosts as Bolton equalised in the 87th minute through Pratley, who stabbed home from close range after Eastleigh failed to deal with a corner.
Neither side could find a winner in the final moments, so a replay will be needed to decide the winner later this month.
Pascal Lemesre
