IT IS difficult to believe that Gulls did not get a big win from this game — let alone come away with nothing at all.

Certainly home boss John Batch was lost for words after seeing his side’s dismal run continue with their sixth loss in their last seven games in all competitions.

He said: “I’ve got nothing to say. It’s over now and you saw what went on out there. Write what you think.”

My thoughts are that, but for a superb performance by visiting goalkeeper Joe Taylor — particularly in the first-half — the Islanders would have had a four or five-goal lead by the break.

But, leaving Taylor’s heroics to one side, the hosts were guilty of some very poor finishing, hapless defending, and a complete inability to kill-off opponents who looked down and out on more than one occasion.

Admittedly in that first 45 minutes James Russell, in the Canvey goal, had to be alert on a couple of occasions.

But at the other end top scorer James Rowe, on at least three occasions, Jason Hallett and Greg Cohen were all foiled by breathtaking stops.

One in particular, a point-blank save from Hallett’s header after great play by Rowe, was particularly outstanding.

Gulls had taken a 21st-minute lead when a free-kick was touched to Cohen and he scored with a deflected effort.

And it looked — and should have been — all over on 44 minutes when Hallett at last scored his first goal for the club since his arrival back from Chelmsford in mid-September.

Almost immediately, Canvey again showed that worrying tendency to go to sleep after making a breakthrough.

They had an escape when Russell turned a header from his own defender, Craig Davidson, onto the bar and over.

But they were nowhere defensively as ex-Billericay striker Billy Holland was given time and space to head home for Abbey three minutes into injury-time.

The visitors enjoyed a great let-off early in the second-half when Cohen’s effort hit the inside of an upright and bounced to safety after fine play by Rowe and Hallett who, despite not being outstanding with their finishing on the day, did excel with some great link-ups.

The longer the action went on without Canvey killing off the game the more we suspected Abbey were not out of it. And so it proved!

Displaying the kind of grittiness they are going to need if they are going to retain the Premier status they gained by beating Concord in last season’s Division One North play-off final, Abbey grabbed an equaliser through Ricky Edwards after 79 minutes.

And, when Edwards’s fellow arrival from the substitute bench, Xaniel Doku, grabbed the winner four minutes later, it all had an air of inevitability about it.

Batch may not have wanted to dwell on this match afterwards, but he wll know that there is a lot of work to be done if his side are to be serious promotion challengers this term.