Down the years the "Romance of the Cup" raises it's (often ugly) head in the early rounds of the FA Cup (the oldest football/soccer trophy in the world) when underdogs defeat the bigger boys.
This David versus Goliath conflict is most often confined to the FA Cup 1st Round Proper. So called because the teams from the lowest tiers of the football pyramid have been playing Preliminary and Qualifying rounds since August 11th!
And so it was that last night, November 12th, that my original love, Oldham Athletic, currently in the 4th tier were drawn away to Hampton & Richmond Borough in the 1st Round. H&R, the David in this battle, are from the 6th tier. Another name for this type of game is "banana skin" or to keep the David and Goliath motif going, a giant-killing.
And so after 13 minutes when in probably their first attack and with minimal contact any where about his person, the H&R winger went flying in the penalty box and the referee pointed to the spot. 1-0 to the hosts.
It's always easy to judge from the luxury of the TV with several angles available to show that the guy took a dive worthy of Tom Daley, but in this instance the referee was close by and had a clear view as did his assistant or "lino" as they are still called by supporters across the country. Calling a bloke that runs the line with a flag "assistant referee" is like calling a cook "a food processing and manufacturing operative".
The remainder of the half saw Oldham huff and puff and make little or no headway. The H&R keeper was named Man of the Match after the game and earned it many times over. The home side did have a few chances mainly self inflicted by Oldham's poor passing.
Oddly even though the ref gave H&R the Tom Daley penalty he gave a yellow card to Oldham's Jose Baxter for a similar Daley-esque special. A dive, Although to be fair he did jump over the keeper's outstretched leg and fall over on landing. And later, the commentator and pundits thought a clear cut penalty wasn't given, again with Baxter involved, when he has hacked down in a clumsy tackle from behind. So going into the second half, Oldham knew where the H&R 12th man was at all times.
As the second half progressed Oldham looked the stronger team and started to apply pressure. Baxter was again involved. At the near post he received the ball and was again hacked down. Again the referee deemed this perfectly acceptable and some 9 minutes later after lengthy treatment on the pitch, Baxter was stretchered off with his leg in an airbag to support it. No foul.
Both sides made changes and with 88 minutes on the clock Rob Hunt fired in the equaliser. With the extra nine minutes to play Old ham turned up the heat. H&R again relied on their keeper and the woodwork to keep it at 1-1. Then, Callum Lang, the player involved in the Tom Daley penalty when he didn't trip or even touch the H&R winger, took on a through ball and fired into the net. 2-1. relief all round for the Blue fans.
The rewards?
- Frankie Bunn keeps his job as Oldham Manager another few weeks
- OAFC bank a massive £19000!!!
- OAFC through to Round 2 away at Maidstone United
- Me and Neill (my brother) might get tickets to go as it is local!
And there it is. Eyes firmly on the club's website and twitter to get tickets for the match at the Gallagher Stadium in Maidstone.
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