Report: The Crown 3 FC Village 2 (After Extra Time)

For the third time this season the Village fell at the Quarter Final hurdle. This time it was in the Victory Cup as they lost to The Crown after extra time and once again this was another match that was full of controversial incidents. Despite losing the week before the Village made only one change as Rutter swapped places with Knoxy with the side still trying to find Maggot’s strike partner. There could have been other changes but Colin was still injured and by the end of extra time in this match the Village may well have had eleven players on the field but two of those were hobbling around. With no Peter, Beattie or Harper there were only 3 subs in Paul, Knoxy and Spud with both Matty and Andy unavailable as it was a cup match.

It didn’t take the Village long to get in their stride and they thought they had opened the scoring after a goalmouth scramble had seen Maggot appear to knock the ball over the line but the ref waved  play as the visitors insisted that it had crossed that line. However they opened the scoring some 15 minutes in when Maggot who had been playing out on the right cut in from the wing and fired home from an acute angle. The Village were well on top although the home had some half chances of their own before the first controversial incident of the match occurred. The ball was played up field and Rutter beat the offside trap and then knocked the wall wide of the keeper. However as he was going round the goalie he was unceremoniously brought to the ground and the ref blew for a free kick to the Village. Last man and in the eyes of the law it should have been a red card but no the ref just shows him a yellow and the Village get a free kick outside the area which is wasted. Had the Crown been reduced to 10 men with the goalie gone then the Village may well have had an easier time, as it was they once again failed to get that second goal and so when half time arrived they only led 1-0.

As in the previous match the Village were forced to make a substitution during the interval as Stewy was still feeling ill so he was replaced by Paul with Fordy moving out to full back but they still looked in control. Then some 10 minutes in the Village let one of the Crown defenders run free out of his own half and when he evaded a couple of tackles he suddenly let fly from about 30 yards. The luckless Crozzer thought it was going to sail over the bar but it dipped and they had the equalizer. The home side were right up for it now and they went for a quick second goal which they duly got when a good run down the right ended with a cross which their centre forward drilled home to put them ahead. The Village were up against it now and had to bring on Knoxy for the injured Rutter but they then equalized with about 15 minutes left when from a free kick the ball fell nicely on the edge of the area for Booey to fire home a great volley. Soon after Booey’s knee went again and he was replaced by the third and final sub in Spud as the game approached full time. Then just before the end the Village scored again but the linesman waved for offside against Danny as he fired in but he may well have been on his own when he shot but probably wasn’t when the original pass came in as it had come through a crowd of players.

The 90 minutes were eventually up and the weary teams changed round ready for 30 minutes of extra time. The Village looked like the walking wounded as both Crozzer (knee) and Buntzy (back) were hobbling around. However this didn’t deter the visitors from looking as though they had taken the lead again when from a corner the Crown keeper appeared to have just mistimed the flight of the ball and Danny slotted in from close range. Once more the ref got his whistle out and this time blew for a foul that no one else saw. Then down at the other end tragedy struck when a harmless cross appeared to be an easy catch for Crozzer but he somehow let the ball fall from his hands and a Crown forward gleefully tapped home. The second fifteen of extra time arrived with the Village trying to take the match to penalties but it looked like they had run out of steam and the Crown held on for the win. So no semi final for the third time this season and the Village knew once again they had lost a game they had played well in.

Team Line-up

FC Village: Doran: Saunders, Whorton, Ford, Morrell(Stewart); Brennan, Easterbrook(Greenfield), Jones, Kearney; Rutter(Knox), Eaton
Subs not used:

More photos from this game click here