Off-colour Oxhey Jets grabbed a deserved 1-1 draw against Spartan Youth but there was little pleasure at the outcome in the visitors’ ranks after Saturday's game.

The home side capitalised on a bad defensive mistake to take the lead at Northwood FC, but a thunderous equaliser from James Barnett ensured the away side made the short journey home with some reward from their most local away match of the Combined Counties League Division One season.

Jets are a young squad and inconsistency in performances and results is to be expected. However, the stunning 6-1 victory over runaway Division One leaders Amersham Town in the St Mary’s Cup earlier this month has raised expectations at the Boundary Stadium and makes what was described as a “shoulder-shrugging half-hearted effort” all the more disappointing.

Nowhere was Jets’ lacklustre performance more evident than in front of the opposition goal.

Although the Spartan goalkeeper made some excellent saves, Jets had numerous chances – including several one-on-ones – and should have made more than Barnett’s effort count.

The South Oxhey club’s attention now turns to tomorrow night’s Division One Challenge Cup clash against Langley but they know they need to lessen the gap between the high and lows in their performance levels.