THE sight of chairman Anthony Hampson punching the air showed exactly what this match meant to Worcester City.

Hampson, flanked by his fellow directors at the New Bucks Head, greeted the final whistle with a celebration as if City had won the match.

For this was more than just an FA Cup clash, it was a desperately needed money-making opportunity for a club failing to make ends meet.

Earning a deserved replay ensured a sizable chunk of the gate receipts from a 1,500 crowd, with the promise of more to come at St George’s Lane tonight.

Quick cash is exactly what the Blue Square South club needs at the moment and Hampson should have been the first to praise Richard Dryden’s side team for their efforts.

City defended doggedly from start to finish, once again led by the powerhouse duo of captain Tom Kemp and Mark Clyde.

Telford had the lion’s share of possession, including 11 corners, but rarely were they able to hurt their opponents and keeper Ben Hinchliffe looked assured when called on.

City, who have now kept three clean sheets in a row, might even have been celebrating themselves had Craig Wilding and Rob Davies done better with first-half openings, the best two chances of a hard-fought contest.

Manager Dryden made two changes, one forced, from the Dover victory with Gary Walker and Davies coming into midfield for Louis Bridges and the cup-tied Matt Birley.

Five corners was a measure of the hosts’ dominance in the first 30 minutes, but Sean Newton’s deliveries failed to produce the goal Telford’s play threatened.

It took until the 29th-minute for Rob Smith’s side to finally warm the hands of Hinchliffe and even then the keeper held Lee Vaughan’s strike comfortably.

Worcester had offered little as an attacking force but should have broken the deadlock with 32 minutes gone.

Wilding stole the ball in midfield, played a tidy one-two with Matt Dinsmore but failed to connect cleanly with his effort and keeper Ryan Young smothered close-in.

Dryden’s men also came agonisingly close to taking the lead nine minutes later. Walker cut the ball back from the byline to Dinsmore, he found Davies on the penalty spot but the midfielder fired straight at Young.

The start of the second-half followed a similar pattern to the first with Telford forcing the issue and the visitors defending resolutely with two banks of four.

This time, Carl Rodgers headed over from Newton’s corner when he would have expected to hit the target and Phil Trainer’s header was saved by Hinchliffe.

Rob Elvins then stung the palms of Young and, soon after, Bucks skipper Stuart Whitehead did superbly to track sub Marco Adaggio’s break upfield and thwart him with a timely tackle.

City were growing in confidence as the game ebbed and flowed and the visiting fans must have believed victory was possible.

Striker Steve Thompson, on loan from Port Vale, added a fresh option for the hosts and his curling effort was plucked acrobatically out of the air by Hinchliffe on 68 minutes.

But, for all their attacking intent, Telford’s build-up play continued to lack an end product.

The game became end-to-end with both sides seeking the decisive goal and Adaggio managed to twist himself into a good position just inside the area before drilling the ball at Young.

Telford grew more anxious as the clock ticked down and it required a last-ditch clearance from Kemp to deny sub Danny Edwards two minutes from time.

Sub Bridges and Thompson both fired over in a frantic finale to ensure the teams must do it all again at the Lane tonight.