PF Loco FC 0 Kingsmead FC 0 – Kingsmead win 4-1 on penalties
PENALTY KINGS-MEAD END LOCO’S CUP DREAM
A cold and blustery Thursday evening saw Bishop Sutton AFC host the XbotGo sponsored Somerset Sunday Challenge Cup, between Chippenham & Bath League, Premier division rivals PF Loco FC and Kingsmead FC.
For both teams they were looking to create their own piece of Sunday Cup history, Steve Barnes , Kingsmead side were looking to become the first team to lift the trophy for a sixth time while for Loco they were looking to get their hands on the Cup for the first time ever.
If the league meetings between the two sides were anything to go by, the healthy crowd who had braved the cold to watch what had been predicted to be a thriller and would have expecting a goal fest, but that wasn’t the to be, despite sharing 11 goals between them in their two matches earlier in the season, neither were able to find the net in match that wasn’t for the purist and had to be settled by the dreaded penalty shoot-out, with Kingsmead finally coming out as 4-1 victors.
To be fair to both sides, the pitch at Bishop Sutton wasn’t in the best shape as neither side were able to play their best football in what was a very scrappy yet competitive game of very few chances, the first of which fell the way of Kingsmead in the 12th minute when a Rhys Talmash cross was hooked wide of the target by Charlie Saunders.
It would be fair to say that Kingsmead had the better of the first half and they went close to breaking the deadlock on 28 minutes when Jed Benjamin saw his somewhat tame head drop the wrong side of the upright. In the 30th minutes Rhys Talmash thought he’d given Kingsmead the lead, having been picked out from a free kick his powerful strike from 8 yards looked to heading in, until an incredible double goal line clearance from Sam Eysley kept the score line goalless, first Eysley kept out the Talmash strike and then he denied Ryan Rudland from the follow up.
Kingmead had a couple of half chances in the last few minutes of the half, but both Talmash and Rudland fired straight into the arms of Loco’s keeper Adam Collier.
PF Loco started the second period the better of the two sides as they took the game to Kingsmead, but again neither were able to create any clear openings on what was a relatively easy night for both keepers. With penalties looming Loco put a move together that really should have seen them conjure up a late winner, following an excellent build up the ball fell to Danny Bond who saw his name in lights but blasted over with the goal at his mercy.
At the other end Kingsmead had one last chance to win it in the 90 minutes, a free kick from Jon Dolman was spilled by by keeper Adam Collier who managed to take it at the second attempt with Simon Gilbert ready to pounce on the loose ball.
With the final whistle blown and the score at 0-0, it came down to the dreaded penalty shoot out.
Charlie Saunders converted his first for Kingsmead, with Nico Inglis having his effort for Loco saved by keeper Graeme Lawton.
Sam Whiston tucked away the second spot kick for Kingsmead with James Book scoring the first of the evening for Loco. Rickie Scott then put Kingsmead 3-1 and when Glenn McDonnell saw his effort saved by Lawton it was left to Ryan Rudland to win it for Kingsmead. Rudland held his nerve and sealed a 4-1 penalty shoot out victory for the 6 time County Cup winners.
