Aylesbury returned to action with a well deserved win at Stourport Swifts. Aside from a twenty minute spell at the start of the second half, the Ducks controlled the game with a superb performance and some high quality football.
Unfortunately that sticky patch after the break resulted in the home side taking the lead, former Evesham striker Mark Owen continuing an impressive scoring record against the Ducks when he netted the opener on fifty five minutes.
With their away form as it is this season, the travelling supporters would have been forgiven for expecting the worst. But Aylesbury dug deep and once again reached the same levels of their first half exploits, when they had carved Swifts apart and created chance after chance, but had no luck in front of goal.
After two weeks of weather-enforced heel kicking, United showed no signs of rustiness and quickly set about getting at their hosts. As early as the first minute a shot from Chris Marsh flew just past the upright and Danny Mead got in on the act moments later when he struck a right-footed effort which had to be gathered in by Paul Evans.
The Walshes Meadow pitch was truly atrocious and was making things unpredictable in a boggy penalty area where every ball played in simply stuck in the mud. Hawkins found a chance gone begging on one such occasion when, having chested down Boyce's cross, the ball stuck and the defence were able to clear.
Hawkins did slightly better on fifteen minutes when, after some brilliant one-touch football, a cross in from the left was guided into his path by Matt Butler, but Aylesbury's top scorer slightly scuffed his effort and Evans got down well to save.
He came closer still three minutes later when a left-footed volley had Evans beaten, but span up off the turf and cruelly rebounded off the post; and then saw a shot take a double deflection before going out for a corner.
The chances kept coming, and when Mead's dangerous cross was punched into the path of Butler he had a great opportunity, but chose to try and head the ball to Nathan Graham instead of the empty net. Minutes later Graham tried a scissor kick but couldn't make proper contact from Marsh's cross.
Stevens, still in a forward position after a corner, flicked a header all the way across goal on the end of a flighted pass. Another cross in from wide, this time Mead, was met by Hawkins but still the deadlock wasn't broken, his header held by Evans.
Mead spooned a shot over from five yards out as yet another clear cut chance came and went, and as the half-time break approached the sparse crowd were left to wonder just how Aylesbury hadn't found the net.
Half-time: Stourport 0-0 Aylesbury
Stourport were markedly better after the break, and it was they who took the game to the Ducks in the first fifteen minutes and they had their first genuine shot on goal when an early snapshot from Chris Cornes was straight at Vincent.
Three minutes later a long ball downfield wasn't dealt with by the Ducks backline, and as it hit the mud it bounced up nicely for Owen who struck a wayward volley sailing out of the ground.
The game was now more evenly balanced, and Aylesbury were soon back on the attacking trail. Nathan Graham drove past two men on the touchline before seeing his cross deflected just over and onto the roof of the net. Marsh repeated the trick soon afterwards, his cross from the byline turned over the bar on the near post.
Stourport then took the lead when Owen latched onto a ball over the defence. As it stuck in the mud Vincent raced off his line only to find himself stranded as Owen lobbed him perfectly, before running onto the ball, which had again held up in the mud, and rolling into the empty net. 1-0 Stourport
The goal was a shock for Aylesbury, but proved only a temporary setback as the hosts' lead lasted just three minutes. Graham outpaced Nathan Jukes, before the two went down in a heap after Jukes' desperate challenge. The Aylesbury man picked himself up to continue his run before squaring for the waiting Marsh. His shot was superbly blocked by Evans, the rebound falling for Hawkins who also saw his shot heroically blocked by a defender. It proved third time lucky for Matt Butler who placed the ball into the bottom corner and levelled the game. 1-1
For the first time of the afternoon, the game entered a brief period of quiet, but Aylesbury soon set about their quest for a winner. Paul Evans was off his line quickly to save at Graham's feet after a great move ended with Mealor threading the ball through to him.
Sam Swonnell, who showed his class all afternoon and just why Aylesbury need him back in the side, got in on the action when he had a curling shot deflected wide, and from the resulting corner Graham headed wide.
As the minutes ticked by it started to look like it wasn't going to be United's day, Mealor having a half-volley held by Evans and Graham's low cross just too far in front of the arriving Marsh.
But with six minutes remaining that all changed. Mark Boyce surged down the right and his run took him into the area where he showed great strength and determination to hold off two challenges and pick out Hawkins who joyfully crashed home his 15th of the season. 2-1 Aylesbury
With Aylesbury ahead for the first time in the game, it looked unlikely that the Ducks were going to be undone again. Instead, they went close to grabbing a third when Mead's curling effort was cleared off the line.
There was a late chance for Swifts, but a thirty-yard free-kick effort always looked ambitious and the shot was easily held by Vincent and that was that, a deserved win for Aylesbury.
