The Hoops staged a
terrific fightback on Wednesday to book their place in the second round of the
FA Vase.
Trailing 3-1 early in the second half, Derek Hares’ side stunned Westside by
scoring three times in the space of 10 minutes to set up a home tie with
Hertfordshire club Oxhey Jets in the next round.
Yet the chances of that happening had seemed decidedly slim on a night when
Deal had to contend with pre-match problems both on and off the pitch. Holds-ups on the M20 meant that the team didn’t arrive
at Westside’s Chalky Lane ground, which they share with Chessington & Hook
FC, until 20 minutes before the kick-off, and then in their brief warm-up the
Hoops lost Kane Smith after he tweaked a hamstring and so Josh Maughan stepped
in off the subs’ bench.
Things then got worse for Deal when the
Combined Counties League side went in front through Tevon Webster after 12
minutes in what was their first attack, but the Hoops always looked capable of
breaking through the Westside defence and with 32 minutes gone they equalised
when Maughan fired home from the edge of the box following a corner.
Deal then looked set to go in at half-time on
level terms only for Westside to regain the lead through Nathan Hunter-Moses
just before the break after some slack Hoops’ defending from a free-kick.
And the situation worsened for Deal 10
minutes after the restart when they were caught out by a quick break which
ended with Zach Johnson-Read making it 3-1.
Hares responded by making a double
substitution, bringing on Troy Howard for Alfie Foster and Jack Penny for Liam
Hark, and it was Howard’s pace which helped to change the game. He set up
Deal’s second goal by finding Ben Chapman, who was then fouled in the area and
Steve O’Brien converted the 70th-minute spot kick.
And five minutes later it was O’Brien again
who brought the Hoops level, this time with a driven corner which flew straight
into the Westside net.
With Howard continuing to cause the home
defence problems, it was Deal who now looked the more likely winners and with 10
minutes left the young winger fired in another cross which flew into the net
off Connor Coyne’s shoulder.
The stunned home side tried to respond in the
closing stages but the Hoops held firm to pull off a tremendous victory, with
head coach Steve King “tweeting” afterwards: “Great character from the boys
tonight when not much went right against tough opposition. The boys never gave
in and I’m proud of them.”
Deal: Tonkin, Hark (Penny 58), Maughan,
Bigginton, O’Brien, Munday, Foster (Howard 58), Chapman, Reeves, Coyne
(Treadwell 81), Wilson.
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ITS AN AWAY DAY FOR THE NEXT ROUND OF THE FA VASE
BREAKING NEWS We have been drawn AWAY to Bridgwater United FC in the 5th Round of The FA Vase. The tie will be played at 3pm on
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Well done to all involved for a fantastic fight back on the night?
With tough games coming up on Saturday and Tuesday night ( weather permitting ),let’s hope everyone’s fit for not only them but the important Vase game on the 2nd November ?