GREATYARMOUTHFC.CO.UK

Tuesday 22nd September 2009

FA Youth Cup, 1^st qualifying round

Kirkley & Pakefield Youth 2, Great Yarmouth Town Youth 2

After extra time (score at 90 mins. 2-2)

Kirkley won 5-4 on penalties.

All the excitement and all the drama of the FA Cup was present at Walmer Road on Tuesday evening, with the young Bloaters going out of this season’s competition by the narrowest of margins, as kicks from the penalty mark proved decisive. 

Twice the Yarmouth youngsters were given a lifeline when all looked lost but they were unable to turn their fortune into ultimate success. With the score at 2-1 to Kirkley, and five minutes added time having been played at the end of the normal 90, Yarmouth were awarded a penalty when Adam Blanch was held back in the home area: Simeon Lee, who had taken over the captaincy when Lee Roscoe was injured in the first half of normal time, remained cool in the pressure of the situation and scored from the spot kick to send the tie into extra time when no further goals were scored. 

Lee featured again in the next incident when his penalty attempt in the shoot-out was saved but the referee ordered a retake: this time he made no mistake to give Yarmouth a 2-1 lead in the supplementary competition, but after the first five kicks each it was all square at 3-3.  

More drama followed in the sudden-death stage when Yarmouth ‘keeper Jake Sharpe saved the seventh Kirkley spot kick only for the referee again to order a retake. Sharpe saved this too but yet again a retake was awarded Kirkley and this third time proved one too many and the home side took a 5-4 lead. Joachim Sisse shot wide for Yarmouth and it was finally all over at 10.30, nearly three hours after the match started! 

In the first 90 minutes, Kirkley had taken a 35^th minute lead through Connor Borrett but this was cancelled out when Roscoe’s substitute Josh Trett shot home two minutes into the second half. Kirkley then regained the lead  through Ryan Crisp after 71 minutes. 

Joint manager Mark Scales commented: “What a close match, but we had a poor first half, and not really creating too many chances cost us. We didn't do enough to win the game but when it came to penalties anything can happen, which they did. When Sharpey saved the fifth penalty (twice!) you think you've done enough. To have them re-taken twice was disappointing when you believed you'd got your noses in front and were going through to the next round. Losing Lee Roscoe through a hamstring injury in the first half didn't help matters as he's an influential player. But in fairness Kirkley & Pakefield would have felt hard done by if they didn't progress as they did shade it in the 120 minutes.” 

Team – J Sharpe, D Harvey, E Short, S Pullin, S Lee, L Roscoe, J Deeley, R Catchpole, A Blanch, J Sisse, K Howe. Subs: J Trett, J Amey, J Ward, C Bari (n/u).