FA Cup, Third Qualifying Round: @needhammktfc 1 @DartfordFC 6

Or, as the title suggests, "The Day That The Wheels Fell Off". It was, I'm afraid, not one of the most glorious moments in the eight or so years that I've been intermittently following our local non-league football team. And yet, it had started so promisingly...

The sun was shining brightly on a somewhat busier than usual Bloomfields, as Conference South side Dartford were the visitors, with the promise of knockout drama and a possible giant killing. Alright, Dartford are only one division above Needham Market, but it's quite a big step up from the Bostik League to the Conference South, as a number of teams have found in recent years. And besides, they had been in reasonably good form coming into the match, whereas the Marketmen appeared to be saving their best performances for the road, with a rather poor home record thus far.

The theory is that the underdog has two options, either keep it tight and try to nick a goal from a set piece, or have a go, and Needham Market had clearly chosen the latter, putting the Darts under quite a lot of pressure early on. It all looked promising until, twenty minutes in, a Dartford free kick just outside the box was played along the ground, causing some chaos, and after a scramble, the Dartford number nine, Alfie Pavey, struck a fierce shot past the home keeper.

The sun promptly disappeared behind a cloud. It was an omen, wasn't it...

Whilst Needham weren't obviously downhearted - it was rather against the run of play - it was clear that the goal had settled the visitors and, from a tidy break, a nasty, teasing cross from the left was met by a bullet header from that man Pavey. Thirty-five minutes gone, 2-0 to Dartford.

Needham heads were visibly dropping at this point, and you just had to hope that they could make it to half-time just two down and regroup for the second half. It wasn't to be. In stoppage time, another ball into the box, good strength shown to hold off the defender before hooking a shot past the keeper. Yes, it was a hattrick for Pavey, who else?

The mood in Bloomfields was a resilient one though, and in truth, Dartford had made only four real chances, and a quality striker had taken three of them, none of them that easy. Dartford's more confident distribution, with an ability to move the ball at pace, was at the heart of the gap between the two sides.

The second half kicked off, with the hope that the score could be kept respectable. It didn't last long, as with Needham pushing forward, another lightning break, a well-chosen diagonal through ball and Tom Murphy took a gift-wrapped opportunity to make it 0-4.

It could have been even worse soon afterwards, with Dartford awarded a penalty for a senseless push on Pavey as he had a clear header on goal. The defender was lucky to get away with a yellow card, and had an even luckier escape when the keeper managed to push the penalty onto the bar, the rebound being blazed over it.

The Dartford manager had clearly seen enough to be relaxed about saving key players for the league campaign ahead, and Pavey and Murphy were both substituted on the hour mark. Whilst the substitutes were getting into the game, Needham stepped up a gear and, from a corner, central defender Sam Nunn got above his marker to nod in what was probably only going to be a consolation.

There followed a brighter spell from the hosts but, just as you began to wonder if they might spark an unlikely comeback, Dartford cut them to ribbons. Again, a break from the back, another long diagonal ball cut out the defence, and Andy Pugh had an age to beat the keeper and restore his team's four goal advantage.

With twenty minutes still to go, you feared for the Marketmen, but the game remained pretty open, with both sides looking to add to their tally, until, with seven minutes to go, Warren Mfula, on as a substitute, was on the verge of beating the last defender when he was brought down somewhat clumsily. A red card was the only likely outcome and the referee didn't shirk his responsibility, ending Billy Holland's afternoon with seven minutes to go.

The game rather petered out after that until, in stoppage time, Gareth Heath laid off a hideous back pass to an unsuspecting keeper who just about beat the onrushing striker. Unfortunately, he could only toepoke it to Ryan Hayes, whose precise pass into the net from thirty yards or more put the final gloss on what was an object lesson in how to avoid a Cup upset.

So, a 6-1 beating for the Marketmen, and an emphatic end to the dream of a game against the big boys in November. It would be fair to say that, whilst Dartford were clearly the better side, a five goal margin wasn't reflective of the gap in ability between the two sides. Needham were a bit naive and open at the back, and a bit underpowered up front, where Ryan Gibbs tried his hardest but doesn't yet have the nous or power to compete with more hardened and experienced central defenders.

Back to the league then, and perhaps an FA Trophy run?...

FA Cup, Second Qualifying Round: Needham Market 2 Chesham United 0

Unfortunately, being a Liberal Democrat kept me away from this afternoon's match at Bloomfields, but that didn't prevent me from vicariously following the game through the wonders of Twitter. And it was good news for the Marketmen in their rather harder follow-up to the game at Clapton.

Chesham United are at a similar level to Needham Market, and play in the Southern League, but given that the Conference South teams enter the competition at this stage, it would have considered a relatively benign draw. But games like that have to be won, and with £4,500 going to the winner, there was a lot riding on it.

The deadlock was broken by Callum Harrison, just before the half-hour mark, and a Dan Morphew goal early in the second half allowed Needham Market to go through in relatively unflustered fashion.

It begins to get serious now, with the chance of a First Round proper tie against a League One or League Two team on the not so distant horizon, only two wins away. The Conference National teams come in at the Fourth Qualifying Round stage, but before that, fingers will be crossed for a benevolent draw, avoiding some of the Conference South teams that remain in the draw. Oh, and yes, there's the small matter of £7,500 for the winner of a Third Qualifying Round match, a tidy sum for a team like Needham Market.

So, come on the Marketmen in two weeks time! And, if it's possible, I'll be there...

FA Cup, First Qualifying Round: Clapton 0 Needham Market 3

On the face of it, it looks like a fairly straightforward triumph for the Tier 3 team, away at the Tier 5 wannabe giant killers. In truth, for the first hour or so, it was rather more even, as a bobbly, hard pitch with some interesting features gave Needham Market a few puzzles to solve.

With seemingly very few home fans in the ground, the two teams kicked off in bright, even warm, sunshine with little active crowd support. It was quickly evident that Needham's preferred style of play, involving balls to feet, wasn't too clever, with erratic bounce and an apparent ridge running along the middle of the pitch from goal to goal. 

Clapton were enthusiastic, if a bit erratic, but when some suspect defending let one of their strikers in, it looked for all the world as though they would take the lead. He rounded the keeper, and had a clear sight on goal at close range, but managed to find the defender on the goal line. It should have been one-nil, but even such a scare didn't seem to provoke a meaningful response from the visitors.

Midway through the first half, it became apparent why the crowd was so thin. At the end of the ground, where an alleyway runs against the fencing, a group of maybe fifty or so suddenly bobbed into view, singing and chanting on their team. It was the legendary Clapton Ultras, who are boycotting home matches until the loathed Chairman and purported owner of Clapton FC, Vince McBean, goes away. They were in fine voice, and with much to sing about, as what chances there were tended to fall to the home side. Whilst Needham looked like the better team, had they been behind at half-time, it wouldn't have been unjust.

The second half began in fairly similar fashion, with Needham struggling to string passes together, but the tactics had clearly changed, with the ball spending more time in the air, rather than on the ground. It wasn't pretty, but it was effective, as the Marketmen began to dominate.

66 minutes in, and the breakthrough came, Gareth Heath scoring his first goal since joining the club from arch-rivals Leiston during the summer (they're arch-rivals due to the fact that they always seem to give us a bit of a hiding...). And, to be honest, that was about it as far as suspense goes, as it seemed to me that the Clapton players seemed to know that the game was up.

Needham tightened the screw without ever seeming to be played to their full potential, and goals from Luke Ingram, after some neat play, and Callum Harrison with a fiercely struck effort from twenty yards or so clinched a place in the next round.

I had a train to catch, so couldn't hang around, but I did talk to a few of the Ultras on my way past. They're mostly young, pretty radical, and very committed to their football and the community around them. They're also friendly, unless you're a fascist and/or racist. It's almost a pity that they didn't hang on for a replay, as they might well have proved welcome visitors to Bloomfields.

And so, we await Monday's draw. The Conference North and South teams enter at this stage, but a home draw against FC Romania might be interesting... Come on you Marketmen!

#FACup Third Qualifying Round draw - it's a grudge match... at home

So, the road to the FA Cup proper is a little clearer now, after yesterday's draw at Wembley. And, it's a game with a bit of spice.

Last season, after the miracle that was the last game of the regular league season, when not only did Thurrock have to lose against Tilbury but Needham Market had to overturn a sizeable goal difference disadvantage against Chatham Town and both happened (the Marketmen won 7-1!), the play-off semi-final saw Needham Market travel to Witham Town.

 

Witham won 1-0 with an 88th minute winner, helped in part by the presence on the pitch of a loanee from Needham Market. It had been understood that there was in place a gentlemen's agreement that he wouldn't play, but Witham Town's management appear not to have understood the meaning of the word.

 

Manager Mark Morsley rather presciently noted in his review of last season;

I would say that I am glad that Witham Town achieved promotion; that means I will not have face them next season. Mind you the FA competitions have a habit of throwing up interesting games. 

It's certainly not an easy game, but it is a winnable one potentially, and given that there wasn't a harder fourth qualifying round draw possible than the Conference leaders last year, supporters can perhaps dream of a big day in early November.

 

Sadly, I won't be there, as I'll be in Lisbon, but I'll be following events on Twitter with interest and optimism...

#FACup, Second Qualifying Round - Boris Johnson, your boys took one hell of a beating... eventually

The two teams shake hands before the match,
Marketmen in red, Tigers in orange and black,
funnily enough

So, three o'clock came, and Needham Market kicked off towards the new Les Ward stand, filled with home supporters anticipating most of the action to be at that end of the pitch. And, for ten minutes, London Tigers barely ventured out of their own half as the Marketmen pressed hard, creating, but not taking, two decent chances. It was, surely, only a matter of time before they broke through.

And then, all of a sudden, with thirteen minutes gone, the Tigers struck with a slick move and a good header. Could it be that the underdogs had struck first? Fortunately, an offside flag came to the rescue, but the warning was there, and Needham responded swiftly. A raking crossfield pass by Chris Hogg, a first time cross from Darryl Coakley and Sam Newson's bullet header powered into the back of the net.

15' - Needham Market 1 London Tigers 0

It looked to me as though the Tigers' heads dropped, and whilst the traffic wasn't one way any more, they didn't look threatening as Needham pushed on in search of the second. They were nearly caught on the break though, as another attacking move broke down, and Ian Westlake had to commit a very cynical foul to prevent a breakaway and a likely one-on-one with the home keeper. Thankfully, as he was well inside his own half, a yellow card sufficed.

The Tigers' defence had looked suspect throughout, and when a bouncing ball in their box caused panic, Ryan Crisp took advantage and chipped over the keeper and into the net.

45' - Needham Market 2 London Tigers 0

Half time came, and as the sun shone, it looked as though Needham simply had to keep it tight, not do anything rash, and a place in the Third Qualifying Round was theirs. And it didn't take long to confirm that impression. Another neat move, involving two of Needham's former professionals, Kem Izzet and Ian Westlake, ended in a neat ball to Ryan Crisp who chipped the keeper once agian.

47' - Needham Market 3 London Tigers 0

Manager Mark Morsley withdrew Ian Westlake, presumably to save him for key league fixtures to come, introducing Ace Howell, a young black product of the club's academy, and hero of the First Qualifying Round game against Cambridge City. Quick, skilful, but perhaps not quite physically robust enough yet, his pace was likely to be a threat as the underdogs tired, as if they didn't have trouble enough.

With half an hour to go, it was time for super striker Sam Newson to be brought off, and his replacement was Ace's brother Lemell, making his debut. Chris Hogg, formerly of Hibernian and Ipswich Town, had gone off in the sixth-eighth minute, and it was all beginning to drift though until an unnecessary free kick was given on the edge of the box, and the Tigers captain, Terence Cariba, stepped up and curled it sweetly into the bottom corner.

72' - Needham Market 3 London Tigers 1

It surely didn't matter though, did it? Needham still looked comfortable but the Tigers' tails were up and, after some comedy defending, Ayoub Amellal nipped in to beat Shaun Phillips from close range.

78' - Needham Market 3 London Tigers 2

Surely, Needham weren't going to throw away a three-goal lead at home against a team from a lower league? But, for a few moments, it looked decidedly likely as a team stripped of key players was going to crack under the pressure as jitters spread amongst the home supporters.

And then, relief. Ace Howell's cross, brother Lemell's delicate touch and to the delight of friends and family of the Howell brothers sitting in front of me, the ball nestled in the back of the net.

86' - Needham Market 4 London Tigers 2

That was it, but there was still time for Ace Howell to burst through, his pace leaving the defender for dead, before threading the ball past the somewhat immobile keeper and inside the left-hand post.

87' - Needham Market 5 London Tigers 2

The last few moments negotiated safely, the final whistle blew and thoughts of the next round could begin. Elsewhere, Brightlingsea Regent had equalised against Harlow Town, leaving Needham Market level on points at the top of Ryman League Division One North, so a good day all round.

I wonder who we'll get in the next round?...

#FACup, Second Qualifying Round - setting the scene as the Cup dream returns to Mid Suffolk

After my day out last season, sponsoring a home game of our local Ryman League, Division One North, football team - Needham Market FC - I had intended to take in a few more games this year. Sadly, our busy schedule combined with the fact that, when we were at home, Needham Market weren't, has meant that it hadn't been possible until yesterday. However, having got back from Gibraltar on Friday evening, I was able to go to yesterday's big FA Cup game at Bloomfields.

Last year, the Marketmen made it to the Fourth Qualifying Round for the first time ever, just one game short of a dream tie against a Football League side, but drew the worst possible opponent, Cambridge United, then top of the Conference and flying high - technically the highest ranked team in the competition at that stage. And, whilst it was at home, the three division gulf between the two sides made it feel like Mission Impossible. However, in front of a crowd of nearly 1,800 at Bloomfields, they came within ten minutes of holding on for a replay, in one of the town's biggest ever days.

This year, Soham Town Rangers were dispatched in the Preliminary Round, before Cambridge City of the Southern League's Premier Division (a division above Needham Market's) were vanquished on their own pitch in the First Qualifying Round. The reward for beating a higher-ranked side was what looked like a rather kinder draw in the next round.

London Tigers are a team that brings back some very distant memories. The very first game of competitive football that I ever saw was between Kingsbury Town and Farnham Town in 1972, and, having been brought up in Kingsbury, I always looked out for their results out of a vague sense of nostalgia. A few years ago, they merged with London Tigers to form Kingsbury London Tigers, which didn't really feel the same. It got worse when the Tigers decided to move to Greenford in West London, leaving the Silver Jubilee Park ground, and Kingsbury, without a football team to call its own.

It would be fair to say that, even allowing for the fact that I support the home side, I wasn't exactly minded to have much sympathy for the visitors. I had even less when it became known that their Honorary Patron is one Boris "Whiff Whaff" Johnson...