Thame finally through on penalties against North Leigh

IT went right to the wire with penalties, but

Luke Ricketts

Thame United eventually overcame visitors North Leigh United to book their place in the next round of the Oxfordshire Senior Cup and a trip to Easington Sports.

After a slow start to the game, it was the visitors who opened the scoring after eight minutes when, following some confusion in the home defence, a powerful shot from eight yards beat Cockerill in the Thame goal. United were, at this stage, unable to find any real penetration and their first effort on goal did not arrive until the 20th minute when a drive from distance by Ollie Lynch was saved by the visiting keeper. Indeed, it could have been worse five minutes later, when some indecision between Calvin Evans and Cockerill allowed Seacole to nip-in, only to see his lobbed effort go wide.

However, United were on terms after 29 minutes when a through ball from Lynch found Dan West 25 yards from goal and with the keeper coming out to challenge, West lobbed the ball into an empty net. United were then indebted to Cockerill two minutes before the break, pushing a shot from ten yards wide of the goal when a goal looked the more likely outcome.

United came out the stronger of the two sides in the second half, and went close on 50 minutes through a Dan Jones volley. Jon Coverley then saw a goal-bound effort cleared off the line, before Marcus Mealing struck the bar from a free kick on 60 minutes, with Ellis Hercules scoring from the follow-up, only for the goal to be disallowed for an earlier offence. There followed another clearance off the line by the visitors before, on 81 minutes, a Jones free kick was headed on to the bar by Mealing. Three minutes later and United, following a goalmouth scramble, struck a post, but were unable to find the net.

And so the game moved in to Extra Time with United enjoying the majority of the possession but unable to break down the visitors, who were reduced to 10 men five minutes in to the second period. With no change to the score line, the game went to penalties. After both sides had scored four from five penalties, it was in to sudden death, with Cockerill saving the seventh penalty to give United a chance. Up stepped Luke Ricketts who sent the keeper the wrong way to settle the tie. Final score: 1 – 1.

United: Cockerill, Evans, Hall, Hercules, Coverley (Hodgkins), Lynch, Jones (Connelly), Morris, Mealing (Gray), West, Ricketts