FC Lakeside earned themselves a place in the cup final alongside rivals Broadway United after a convincing 9-0 victory over Cirencester Town.
With Rob Jones moving upfront for the cup-tied Jem Taylor, Lakeside went into the game with Liam Gould in goal, along with Steve Brown taking up a right midfield role after an impressive display against Broadway.
Lakeside were dominating the possession in the early stages, but the final pass seemed to elude the Lakeside strikers on more occasions than not. The Cirencester keeper, who was in for a busy afternoon, continued to keep Lakeside at bay with a string of saves. Despite Lakeside dominating the game, the visitors had a great chance to take the lead on the 23rd minute, only for Lakeside keeper Liam Gould to bravely deny the striker. The 32nd minute saw Lakeside deservedly take the lead when Simon Brady headed home, taking Lakeside into the break with a slender 1 – 0 lead.
After a few words from the manager at half time reminding Lakeside of the rewards from the winning the game, Lakeside were soon off the blocks with Cameron Smith supplying Rob Jones who chipped the advancing goalkeeper. Lakeside’s influential captain Luke Hitchman continued to battle tirelessly in the centre of the park and completed a good team move when supplying Will Norman, who slotted home with ease.
Liam Gould and his back four of Liam Powell, Harry Mansell, Sam James and Alex Pike endured a quiet second half with the Lakeside pilling the pressure on Cirencester. With Cirencester tiring, Simon Brady’s pace and power was proving to be too much for the visitors, with Simon on hand to score a further three goals in a space of four minutes, taking his tally to an impressive 30 goals for the season.
The best goal of the game arrived in the 64th minute when Cameron Smith hit a cracking shot into the top corner from outside the box, taking his season’s tally to 24 goals. Second half sub Luke Robson was also on hand to poach a goal in the 65th minute, before the ever-impressive Luke Hitchman wrapped up the scoring after heading in Rob Jones’ pinpoint corner.
A great team performance, with the reward being a trip to Whadden Road for the cup final on the 26th April.
Man of the Match – Simon Brady
Managers Man of the Match – Luke Hitchman
