Young’s guns now makers of history

NEIL YOUNG reflected on the “biggest day in the history” of Marine AFC after guiding the club to the third round of the FA Cup with a last-gasp victory over Havant & Waterlooville.

Niall Cummins’ bundled winner in the final minute of extra time was enough to see the Northern Premier League North West side become only the second eighth-tier side in English football – after Chasetown in 2008 – to make it through to this stage of the competition. The magic of the Cup is truly alive and to add to the excitement have a look at these betfair offers.

Big-spending National League South promotion chasers Havant & Waterlooville had to play the whole of extra time with a numerical disadvantage after Anthony Straker was sent off late on for a second bookable offence.

The game seemed to be destined for penalties but with the very last attack, James Barrigan sent a free-kick into the box, Anthony Miley flicked across goal and the diving Cummins knocked the ball over Ross Worner and into the net with his back as he hit the floor, sending the Mariners into ecstasy.

“I was starting to think was it one of those days where you’re the nearly man?” Young admitted after a tense finale. “This might not come round again for Marine or myself in the near future so you are just hoping something will happen.

“What does it mean for Marine? For the football club, for the chairman Paul Leary, and Richard Cross the secretary, I would say it is one of the biggest days in the entire history of the football club.”

Hopes, however, of two Step 4 teams making it through were dashed 24 hours later when Boreham Wood came away with a 3-0 win at Isthmian North side Canvey Island.

Goals from Kabongo Tshimanga, Kane Smith and Matt Rhead saw off the brave Gulls in front of the Monday night TV cameras.

Marine were joined in round three by Stockport County who turned the tables on Yeovil Town in the other all-Non-League tie of the round.

Former Hatter Matt Warburton and Luke Wilkinson twice put the Glovers in front – sandwiching John Rooney’s penalty – before Ashley Palmer set up extra time with a second equaliser 14 minutes from time.

The Hatters then upped the ante and won through courtesy of Connor Jennings’ 100th-minute winner.

Dagenham & Redbridge came within seconds of forcing a penalty shoot-out at League Two Mansfield Town, only to go down to a stoppage time winner.

Paul McCallum gave the Daggers a dream start on 19 minutes before Harry Charlesley equalised for the Stags six minutes later.

The game looked set to be decided on penalties after a tense period of extra time until Nick Maynard popped up in the final seconds to break Daggers’ hearts.

Another side denied at the death were Oxford City, who took League One Shrewsbury Town all the way at the New Meadow.

Both sides went into extra time with ten men after City’s James Roberts and Shrewsbury’s Aaron Pierre was sent off following a clash nine minutes from time.

But City’s run was to come to an end after Daniel Udoh’s close-range strike at the start of the second period of extra time.

Barnet also went close to stunning League One opposition, only to succumb to a 1-0 home defeat to Milton Keynes Dons at The Hive.

Peter Beadle’s men could have gone ahead from the opening seconds when Ephron Mason-Clark raced through only to be denied by Dons’ keeper Lee Nicholls who might have been powerless to save just after the interval had Mason-Clark connected properly with an overhead kick.

In between times, the Dons established control, going close when Regan Poole smashed a shot against the underside of the bar after which Stephen Walker blasted over when well placed. 

And then the much-travelled Cameron Jerome, formerly of Stoke and Birmingham City, came off the bench to score the game’s only goal in the 82nd minute, audaciously backheeling Daniel Harvie’s low cross past Scott Leach in Barnet’s goal.

Beadle bemoaned his players’ selflessness in front of goal, telling The NLP:  “They should have been a little bit more selfish instead of trying to score the perfect goal.

“If we’d had a bit more quality, a bit more control of the ball, we might have gone through. But this could be the springboard for us.

“The benchmark is our dressing room. Anyone coming in would have seen how disappointed our players are. No one would have thought there were two divisions between us.”

There was no such tension, however, at Bristol Rovers’ Memorial Ground after National League North Darlington crashed to a 6-0 defeat to the League One Gas.

Two goals from Luke Leahy and strikes from James Daly, Josh Hare, Erhun Oztumer and Sam Nicholson compounded the Quakers’ misery.