MARKET DRAYTON TOWN 2 SHIFNAL TOWN 1
Emirates FA Cup, Extra Preliminary Round
Friday 5 August 2022
Shifnal’s hopes of progressing to the next round of the competition were ended due to a mixture of profligate finishing, and an inspired display by home goalkeeper George Scott – who played for Shifnal for a large part of last season! The game got off to a cagy start, as the sides weighed each other up, but gradually the visitors started to take control. Shifnal opened the scoring from their first effort on target after a quarter of an hour. It followed good work on the left by Tom Hill, who played the ball inside for HARVEY LEWIS, and his low drive from the edge of the penalty area beat Scott at the near post. A minute later, Lewis was through on goal again, but Scott made a fine save, Hill’s follow-up flying over the crossbar. It looked odds-on a second goal for the visitors in the 21st minute. A long ball found Luke Walsh in space on the right, his cross picking out Hill, whose first-time shot was superbly saved by Scott at point-blank range. There followed a 10-minute spell when the hosts were on top. Callum Knowles won possession on 24 minutes and was through on goal, but his final shot was tame and straight at Sheridan Martinez. 2 minutes later, Kian Garbett cut in from the left, and his low shot from 15 yards was expertly turned round the post by Martinez.
The second half started with Shifnal again in the ascendancy. Joe Berks played the ball out to Walsh on the right in the 57th minute. Walsh pulled the ball back for Lewis, but his 18-yard drive was narrowly over the crossbar. Josh Green tried his luck from 25 yards shortly afterwards, but the ball flew past the far post. The turning point in the game came after 73 minutes, when the referee awarded the visitors a penalty after substitute Mike Nelson had been upended in the area. Berks’ spot-kick was hit low and hard to Scott’s right, but the keeper was equal to it and made a fine save. The incident appeared to give the home side belief that they could get something from the game, and on 78 minutes, another former Shifnal man, Rune Corinaldi, crossed from the right for BRENDON PRICE to head home the equaliser. Shifnal had a chance to regain their lead in the 87th minute when Nelson sped down the right, but his angled shot came back off the near post. 2 minutes into time added on, with thoughts moving to a replay, the visitors’ defence had a collective blond moment. Martinez made two great saves, but was powerless with substitute TOM MESSHAM’s header to win the game.
DRAYTON: George Scott, Keefe Williams, Brendon Price, Reece Taylor, Halim Nadeem, Ryan Pickup, Issac Shaw (Josh Graham 77mins), Jack Howse, Callum Knowles (Rune Corinaldi 68mins), Ishaq Ibrar, Kian Garbett (Tom Messham 55mins).
Subs not used: Callum Griffiths; Dan Allen; Callum Jackson.
Caution: Corinaldi (88mins).
SHIFNAL: Sheridan Martinez, Josh Green, Jack Kelly, Joe Thompson, Sam Griffiths, Emem Jones, Luke Walsh, Joe Berks, Tom Hill (Tyrone Ofori 83mins), Max Chimenes (Keanu Cooper 67mins), Harvey Lewis (Mike Nelson 59mins).
Subs not used: Ashley Brown; Lewis Jarman; Kane Lewis; Jack Fishman.
Caution: Green (49mins).
Attendance: 298.
Referee: Ben Stott.
Assistant referees: David White.
Steve Hern.
Shifnal Star Man: Luke Walsh.
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