Despite a downpour on Friday and words of foreboding from Nick White, the game went ahead anyway on a very grassy and very wet Tachbrook pitch.
Both sides took decent scalps in the second round with us beating Khlasa and Tachbrook doing over Leam Juniors, so both sides had thoughts that this could be their year for a cup run.
We started well,playing the ball around nicely but nothing was really happening in the final third. Tachbrook were looking lively and were forcing Nathan into making a couple of good stops. Although he got caught out when Ricky Uppal's free kick swang in high and fast from distance, all he could do was get a hand to it and it fell to an orange shirt who prodded in for 0-1! There was some butterflies over the next ten minutes as they got hold of the game and when Scott went barging into someone inside the box with the ball out of sight, the big Dutch ref had no choice but to point to the spot. It was a bad 10 minutes for Scott, another wild lunge out on the wings saw him cautioned slightly later in the half. Thankfully, normal service was resumed later in the game! Anyway, Nath came to the rescue diving low to his right to push the spot kick away for a corner. Still nothing was coming for us at the other end, a run of corners got nowhere and a few airshots were in evidence. To get in just one down at half time was a relief and a good chance to re-group.
We started the second half looking more sprighlty and Jordan pulled us level with some quick footwork in the box and a shot that the keeper could only help into the net 1-1! Then it was our turn to have 10 minutes on top and we were firing in efforts from all angles but it looked as if the shooting boots of Adam Trinder and Cooper were made of polyester and their keeper was remaining pretty untroubled. Benno had what seemed a good headed goal ruled out for a push by Giggles and it was much against the run of play when Tachbrook hoofed a ball down our left and Whitey and Nath contrived to let their right back get between them and prod the ball home for 1-2! Thankfully our possession turned into a goal when Joey's through ball put Jordan into acres and the little lad chipped the keeper from distance for 2-2! The rest of the 90 minutes was spent with us creating and them hoofing it as far as they could, Joey got boking for a shirt pull and Seb came off groggy to be replaced by Matt Trinder.
In extra time we took the game to a clearly tiring Tachbrook, and got in front for the first time in the first period. Jordan beat the keeper to a ball down the right and when his square ball was dummied by Joey it fell to Giggles who has a Vermalen moment to sweep the ball home for 3-2! Cue over-enthusiastic celebrations by the ex Tachbrook centre half culminating in a less than graceful belly flop on to the right wing, he's promised a Kuqi for next time, should be worth watching..In the second period they started throwing themselves around whilst we played keep ball. The fourth goal came when Matt Trinder drilled a cross for Coops to get a bunion on and poke past his twin in the Tachbrook goal 4-2! Still enough time for Matt Trinder to get a scrap in, which after 119 minutes of standing in the cold was a warming moment in truth!
Not sure who we've got in the next round, there were far too many permatations when the draw was made due to the cold snap. Hopefully Napton away, but I wouldn't of thought so
Nath Carro was back to his best and kept us in it with 3 or 4 fantastic saves in this game, good to see after a bad game last time out against Tavern. The rest of the lads did well, especially second half when we found our voices and started communicating
