What began as a masterclass in attacking football turned into a total nightmare at the Demcom Stadium as Ely City threw away a commanding three-goal lead to draw 3-3 with Mildenhall Town.

The Robins flew out of the traps, looking sharp and fluid from the opening whistle. Just five minutes in, a lively Stephen Pereira, making his debut, slipped Sam Townshend out wide, only for the winger to smash his effort into the side netting. Mildenhall almost capitalized on an Ely defensive mix-up in the 13th minute, but their forward sliced wide - a rare moment of panic in an otherwise dominant opening spell. Pereira continued to terrorise the visitors' backline, winning a set piece on 20 minutes that he narrowly fired over.

The breakthrough finally came in the 26th minute. A brilliant corner floated into the box, and Jamie Baxter rose highest to crash a powerful header into the back of the net. Just three minutes later, the Demcom erupted again. A lofted ball in behind caught the Mildenhall defence napping; Townshend bravely won the header between two defenders, flicking it into the path of Pereira, who smashed home a dream debut goal to make it 2-0.

Ely were purring, and in the 39th minute, another class set-piece delivery found Alfie Rogers, who headed home powerfully to give the Robins a seemingly unassailable 3-0 lead. However, a lapse in concentration just before the break allowed Mildenhall a lifeline. A long ball down the right found Mills completely unmarked, and he comfortably nodded home in the 44th minute to send the teams into half-time at 3-1.

HT: Ely City 3 - 1 Mildenhall Town

If the first 40 minutes were heaven, the second half was an utter collapse. Ely emerged for the restart lacking the fluidity and composure that defined their early display. Mildenhall smelled blood, and in the 58th minute, sloppy play out of defence allowed the visitors to tuck home a second and cut the deficit to one.

The inevitable heartbreak arrived just seven minutes later. Another disastrous, sloppy ball inside presented Mildenhall with an open invitation, and they duly accepted, completing their comeback to make it 3-3 by the 65th minute.

Both teams created half chances to try grab a winner - Townshend went close before Ben Newton had to make a smart save to deny the visitors the complete turnaround.

What should have been a glorious three points on home turf ended in some disbelief and frustration. Literally a game of two halves and two points bitterly dropped.

FT: Ely City 3 - 3 Mildenhall Town

Team; Newton, Butt, Mendy, Rogers, Baxter, Hunt, Logan, Root, Pereira, Townshend, Tarpey.
Subs: Cook, Sutcliffe, Hornibrook, Atkin, A. Brown.

POTM: Stephen Pereira