Mulbarton Wanderers v Hadleigh United

The threatening weather overhead could do nothing to dampen Mulbarton’s bright start against Eastern Counties League Premier Division rivals, in a more exciting game that the scoreline suggests.

Just two minutes had passed when a cross from the home side team through to the far side of the box, where it was controlled by Ben Jones and laid back to Cain Eagleton, who sent it squirming through a disappointed Nick Punter’s legs to give Mulbarton an early lead. The goal sparked Hadleigh into life who went in search of an equaliser, with Mason Ransome drawing a good save from Mulbarton goalkeeper Tom Wright before the game became and end-to-end spectacle, with the home side going close through Joe Easton and Tim Henery, before Harry Brown drew another good save from Wright.

Hadleigh started the second half the brighter, drawing a couple of good saves from Wright before finally finding the top corner of the net, only to see the goal chalked off for offside. Hadleigh continued to push forward in search of their equaliser, but looked vulnerable on the break, a point almost underlined by Joe Easton as he broke through the away sides lines to put the game to bed, only to fire into the side netting. Hadleigh carved out a number of chances as the game drew to a close, but couldn’t find that all important goal.

Mulbarton 1-0 Hadleigh

Mulbarton welcome Welwyn Garden City in the next round.

Martyn Green @TheUntoldGame

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Handsworth FC v Stocksbridge Park Steels

With three Yorkshire Derbies taking place on Saturday afternoon this Fa Cup tie may have been overlooked by many of the Sheffield public with Wednesday playing at Rotherham and United playing their West Yorkshire rivals Huddersfield.

With Sheffield FC beaten in the televised lunchtime game this match provided the remaining Sheffield teams an opportunity to progress in the competition as the only remaining Sheffield representative. Sadly for many years there has been little to celebrate in the FA Cup for our non league clubs.

With so much at stake this game maybe deserved a different kick off slot , on Friday evening or Sunday afternoon. The 198 spectators in attendance were treated to a feast of goals and a big upset. Shame it didn’t attract the supporters it deserved.

With Handsworth having home advantage their artificial pitch would always bring the two teams closer together , despite their league status with Handsworth playing in the Northern Counties East Division One East, and Stocksbridge Park Steels playing one step higher in the Northern Premier League East.

As expected Stocksbridge started strongly , creating chances and shooting opportunities , but not really threatening the home goal. Weathering the possession play of the their higher ranked opposition Handsworth settled and took the lead in the 30th minute when Mitch Dunne’s 25 yard shot dipped into the top corner. Within minutes the striker doubled the lead after a a weak defensive back pass left the keeper with no chance for Dunne to roll the ball into an empty net.

Stocksbridge made amends soon after with a well taken individual goal by Lewis Whitham, giving the tie a more even look. However, poor defending just before half time gave Handsworth a third with Lee Bennet giving the home team a comfortably 3-1 lead going in at half time.

The second half didn’t see the expected strong attack from Stocksbridge and they gave themselves a mountain to climb when James Oliver cut through the heart of the away team’s defence to put the tie out of reach.

Josh Nodder got a consolation goal for Stocksbridge but Handsworth had more to give with Leon Howorth scoring an unstoppable shot off the cross bar to seal an emphatic win and upset for the Home side.

With a solid defence, hardworking midfield and a number of players capable of scoring goals Handsworth have much to offer and will relish another game of knockout football in the first qualifying round.

Hopefully the Sheffield footballing public will come out in bigger numbers for the next game and give Handsworth the support they deserve. With a warm welcome in the clubhouse, a wealth of junior members across all age groups and a community pitch , the club deserves a strong backing.

For Stocksbridge they will be kicking themselves for carelessness in defence, despite starting brightly. After the game the Stocksbridge manager, Chris Hilton departed the club after being in charge for a number of years, an early casualty of the season.

Full credit go to the officials with Dylan Hague maintaining good control despite the usual antagonism of players, management and spectators.

Handsworth will be looking forward to another home tie in the draw on Monday. They will provide tough opposition and gain confidence from this excellent win. Just four more wins in this competition will put them in the velvet bag for an opportunity to play the next Sheffield derby with Sheffield Wednesday entering the first round proper. In the FA Cup anything can happen.

Handsworth 5-2 Stocksbridge Park Steels

Handsworth host Coventry United in the next round.

Andy Davis @Spireite1964

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Halesowen Town FC v Sutton Coldfield Town FC

Nicknames. Some are obvious (Reds, Clarets, Magpies, Canaries, Swans). My team, Birmingham City, is obvious – The Blues – due to the understandably downbeat mood of most fans most times. Others are less directly obvious (Hatters, Cobblers, Foxes, Blades) but there’s a decent link. Then there are those that need a bit more thought (Toffees, Trotters, Addicks, Monkey Hangers).

Sutton Coldfield Town. The Royals (The Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield). My Auntie Elsie used to run The Dog Inn on The Parade in Sutton Coldfield. Family Royalty.

Halesowen Town. The Yeltz. My instinct was something to do with yellow, but there are more interesting possibilities. Ben Bullock and Matt Ponter in their book, The Yeltzmen (and in today’s programme notes), try to get to the bottom of the story. 

Is it a corruption of an old version of the name Halesowen (formerly Hales, before that Halas)? Halas locally may have been pronounced ‘Yalas’, hence Yeltz. Or is it from ‘Ye Earls’, in other words belonging to The Earl (of Dudley). Or Yeltz buttons, from a James Grove Button Company design. Alternatively – and much more unlikely – something to do with a mythical Hungarian national who played for Halesowen in the ’50s? Pungus Catfich would, apparently, shout “Yeltz Albert Yeltz”, which might mean “over here son, on my head’. However, Ben and Matt can find no record of a Pungus Catfich.

As Ben and Matt note in their book, it’s something of a badge of honour to have a nickname nobody understands. There’s much more in the book, available from yeltzclubshop.com. I won’t even start on whether the club’s 150th anniversary is in 2023 or 2027.

Regardless of all of that, here we had a meeting of two Northern Premier League Midlands Division clubs with a great history. The Yeltz founded in 1873, maybe. The Royals founded in 1879. Indeed these clubs have a great FA Cup pedigree, with continuous representation between them in the first round proper for 8 consecutive seasons from 1985/86 to 1992/93; 85/86 to 91/92 (Halesowen Town) and 92/93 (Sutton Coldfield Town). A place in the first qualifying round of the 21/22 FA Cup was at stake. 

The torrential rain had followed me from the previous round at Larkhall Athletic, so most of the 551 crowd were huddled in the shelter of The Harry Rudge Stand (club legend) and The Shed. It didn’t take long for The Yeltz to take control of this one. In the 6th minute Christopher Lait slotted in the opener after a really bright start from Halesowen. The rest of the first half saw The Yeltzmen continuing their domination. Jack Holmes was causing all sorts of trouble with his clever runs and playmaking skills down the right wing. On the approach to half-time it was 2-0 with Christopher Lait bagging his second. 

The second half was a more even affair, but in truth the tie seemed to be over by that point. Man of the Match, Christopher Lait, continued to milk it with the completion of his hat-trick in the 64th minute. The skies turned grey, the rain continued to fall and the match was over with Halesowen Town progressing to the first qualifying round over the weekend of 4th/5th September.

Good venue, nice pint, good atmosphere, decent game and keep an eye out for Jack Holmes who is faster than Bradley Wiggins on steroids. Best of luck to both clubs for the rest of the season.

Full Time: Halesowen 3 Sutton Coldfield 0

Halesowen welcome Ilkeston Town in the next round.

David Johnson @planetdaj

This report first appeared on https://longandwindingroadtowembley.blogspot.com/

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Felixstowe & Walton United v Southend Manor

Felixstowe & Walton United won the battle of the seaside clubs but had to survive a scare as Southend Manor fought back from 4-1 down towards the end of the game to make it 4-3 going into injury time.

On 4 minutes Felixstowe took the lead, Ollie Canfer slotting the ball into a gaping net. Southend had the ball in the net shortly after but were denied by an offside flag. Felixstowe then doubled their lead on 25 minutes, Henry Barley shooting from 20 yards into the bottom corner. Southend did pull a goal back on 28 minutes where Luca Frankis appeared to kick the ball from the goalkeeper’s hands to force it over the line.

The goals continued in the second half, as Billy Holland scored on 62 minutes when he spun to convert a close range effort Canfs making it 4-1, chipping the goalkeeper from a tight angle. The visitors then stunned the home crowd by pulling back two goals from Jordan Chambers on 76 minutes and again on 82 minutes. Miles Powell sealed the victory with his run into the box followed by an emphatic finish to make the tie safe on 95 minutes.

Felixstowe & Walton 5-3 Southend Manor

Felixstowe and Walton host Great Wakering Rovers in the next round.

Steve Street @SteveStreet71

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Balham FC v K Sports FC

Balham and K Sports played out a hotly contested game that brought with it goals, cards, a sending off as well as a missed penalty. In the early stages of the game, K Sports dominated possession, looking extremely comfortable with the ball but created very few goal-scoring opportunities. The momentum of the game quickly switched, with Balham’s No. 8 Ash Snadden scoring courtesy of a defensive error by the K Sports right back. To add insult to injury, during the celebrations of the opening goal, a K Sports player was handed a red card for violent conduct towards an opposing player. This put the visiting side up against it and looked certain to be heading for defeat after they conceded from a set piece with Balham’s No. 4 Marco Erriu driving home a thumping header from 8 yards. No further goals came before half time, but the intensity continued heat up with some close chances for both teams and players on either side shown yellow cards for slightly late challenges. 

Into the second half, and you would have expected K Sports to come out and push for an early goal to give them a slim chance of upsetting the odds however, things went from bad to worse when Balham were awarded a penalty ten minutes after the break. Balham’s No. 9. Tom Read stepped forward to take the spot kick, smashed it down the middle, for it to be comfortably saved by the opposing goalkeeper’s legs. A glimmer of hope gifted to the visiting team spurred them on to create more chances in a 10-minute period following the penalty miss. As K Sports continued to attack to find a goal that could bring them back into the game, they were hit on the counter attack with a minute left of normal time. Balham’s No.14 Julian Fuller slotting home the third goal of the game to seal victory. A comfortable win for the home team, made easier following an early goal and an unnecessary red card. Onto the next round of the tournament and with 6 goals already bagged after two games, two clean sheets and an improving team performance, we await to see who the draw brings up.

Balham FC 3-0 K Sports FC

Balham host Merstham in the next round.

David Ash

Twitter @3men_football

Instagram @threemen_footballchallenge

Fundraising for Motor Neurone Disease Association: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/3men_football/3

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