Nouse.co.uk » City earn trophy progression after epic shoot-out

City earn trophy progression after epic shoot-out

February 13, 2009
Adam Shergold

YORK CITY 1 vs. KIDDERMINSTER HARRIERS 1 After Extra Time, York City win 13-12 on penalties
FA Trophy Third Round Replay, Wednesday 11th February 2009

Goalkeeper Michael Ingham was the hero as York City progressed into the last eight of the FA Trophy, following an epic, late-night penalty shoot-out at KitKat Crescent. Justin Richards was the unfortunate party for Blue Square Premier rivals Kidderminster Harriers, seeing his effort blocked by Ingham after all 22 players had converted at least once. In normal time, Daniel McBreen looked to have sealed York’s passage into a tie with either Havant and Waterlooville or Crawley Town on Saturday week, when he scored with 16 minutes remaining, only for Richards to equalise shortly afterwards and force extra time.

Remaining alive in this competition was imperative for the Minstermen, whose patchy league form has rendered the play-off positions unreachable for another season. Eliminated by Torquay United at the semi-final stage in 2007-2008, Martin Foyle’s team will be aiming to go one better this time and book a first appearance at the new Wembley.

Entering last night’s fixture without a win in five matches, York, who have slipped to seventeenth in the Conference table, needed to rely on home advantage to overcome the Harriers, who are sustaining themselves within a point of the play-offs and reached the third round of the FA Cup. To supplement this, Foyle restored Captain Mark Greaves to the starting eleven, adding strength to a depleted centre-back position, where regulars Ben Purkiss and David McGurk are currently injured.

However, Greaves failed to complete a first-half of few clear-cut openings, having to be replaced by the impressive Simon Russell after picking up a knock. Simon Rusk busied himself in central midfield, and later right-back, engineering the clearest opening of the period for Adam Boyes, who drilled narrowly wide. York arguably had the better of an uneventful start, with more chances before the interval through Boyes and McBreen, though Adam Bartlett in the away goal remained untroubled.

The two best chances of the second-half fell to Richard Brodie, whose occasionally clunky touch let him down in a significant one-one-one situation, before seeing a long-range effort deflected just past the post. Nevertheless, when City made the long-awaited breakthrough it was merited since Kidderminster offered precious little in attack; McBreen required two bites to open the scoring, reacting quickest when his header cannoned off the post to thrash the ball home.

After going close twice more, however, York were caught out by a moment of quality at the other end as Richards curled a 30-yard strike beyond Ingham’s reach to level the scores, to the evident delight of the 34 supporters who had made the journey from Worcestershire. York had to cast aside frustrations at conceding to their opponent’s only worthwhile effort, as well as the onset of fatigue, to play another 30 minutes.

Ingham was called upon to rescue their chances, pushing Martin Brittain’s free-kick away from danger on the cusp of half-time, before York substitute forward Onome Sodje shot straight at the goalkeeper in the second period. Given the unpredictability of this particular method of settling games, it was remarkable that both elevens converted their penalties in a tense atmosphere, before Mark Robinson and Daryl Knights stepped up again to score. The decisive moment arrived after Rusk had edged York 13-12 ahead, with Ingham guessed correctly to repel Richards’ spot-kick and send the majority present home delirious.

York will be aiming to carry this confidence booster into Saturday’s home fixture with Forest Green Rovers and the subsequent quarter-final clash.

York City: Michael Ingham, Kyle Critchell, Mark Greaves (Simon Russell), Danny Parslow, Mark Robinson, Simon Rusk, Levi Mackin, Andy McWilliams (Josh Radcliffe), Daniel McBreen, Richard Brodie, Adam Boyes (Onome Sodje)

Kidderminster Harriers: Adam Bartlett, Keith Lowe, Lee Baker (Daryl Knights), Mark Creighton, Martin Riley, Martin Brittain, Dean Bennett, Andy Ferrell, David McDermott (Brian Smikle), Justin Richards, Matthew Barnes-Homer (Stefan Moore)