Hood retain edge over Fire Service
Knockout Cup quarter-finals as sudden death penalties and a last minute goal settled the two cup matches at BAA Field.
Fire, who went down to Robin Hood 4-1 just over a week ago in a key league match, had the chance to clinch the tie with a penalty late in the game with the score at 1-1.
Alan Wilkinson had come out of goal to score a second half equaliser from the penalty spot and wipe out the lead that Simon Turner had given Hood in the first half.
And Wilkinson had the chance to be the hero for the firemen in the last five minutes of the match when Mark Ray earned another penalty for Fire.
But this time Philip Bolton in the Hood goal saved the spot kick to send the match into penalties.
The teams were level 4-4 after the first five penalties and 4-4 after another five kicks apiece ordered by the referee. It wasn't until sudden death kicks that Jarlath McCabe settled the tie to take Hood into the semi-finals and keep alive their hopes of the league and knockout double.
In the opening match Exiles of the B Division shocked A Division champions BAA Wanderers 3-2 with a last minute winner from Craig Critchlow.
Exiles, pushing for promotion back to the top division, held their own against Wanderers and frustrated their opponents along the way before scoring their late winner. And Exiles will consider the win to be a just result after having a goal by Alan Johnson ruled out when a volunteer linesman from BAA flagged him down for offside 10 minutes before the end when the score was still tied at 1-1.
Five minutes after that Exiles were awarded a penalty and Craig Critchlow, who was fouled, stepped up to score. But the scoring wasn't finished as BAA levelled it up at 2-2 in the 89th minute before Critchlow scored the winner a minute later when his shot slid off a defender's boot and into the top corner out of the keeper's reach.
Darren Booth put Exiles in front in the first half before Wanderers equalised to make it 1-1 at half time.
"If you look back we've always beaten BAA,'' said Johnson. "We knocked them out of the cup before and once when they were unbeaten in the league we were the only team to beat them. We also put them out of the cup in a penalty shoot-out three years ago.'' Last night's other quarter-finals saw Lobster Pot playing MR Onions in the 7.00 opener at Somerset and Wolves Pack and North Village Rams clashing in the 9.00 fixture.