FA Cup Second Round Qualifying

[Rhodes]

The rules for fans at Saturday's Second Qualifying Round ties, it's absolutely laughable isn't it:

https://www.thefa.com/news/2020/sep/29/statement-emirates-fa-cup-spectators-290920

Elite Club v Elite Club - no fans, Elite Club v Non Elite Club - no fans, Non Elite Club v Elite Club - home fans only, Non Elite Club v Non Elite Club - home & away fans. (National North/South & above are considered Elite)

Edited September 29, 2020 by Rhodes

[AlwaysLeighton]

Wow! Well, tickets secured for Saturday, but the support is unbelievable, only 40 tickets left now, 30+ people queueing half an hour before tickets went on sale. Loads of new season ticket holders, absolutely sensational support! 

[Rhodes]

AlwaysLeighton - Not long now, I gather the tie is a total sell out:

[Rhodes]

On 28/09/2020 at 22:19, AlwaysLeighton said:

No, he’s not. Connor and his partner have just welcomed their first child into the world, and he’s only played in 2 competitive games for us, combined about 105 minutes. No need to worry so far, or at all in all fairness.

AlwaysLeighton - How is Connor looking for Saturday, is he raring to go:

[AlwaysLeighton]

Tie is a sell out. Sold out tonight. Could’ve easily sold 500 if not more! 

Our Con will be ready! 

[Rhodes]

I see that Leighton Town have coined in £4,819.00 from their FA Cup run so far this season and could bank a further £3,375.00 if they can beat Leiston tomorrow although what would that have been in normal circumstances had it not been for Covid-19:

[AlwaysLeighton]

THIS IS THE ONE SHES WAITING FOR! 

come on Leighton!

[Rhodes]

A revised graphic of all of this weekend's ties and where fans are and are not allowed, surprisingly no walk overs due to Covid-19 as was the case in earlier rounds:

[Rhodes]

The inclement weather is due to play a big part in the FA Cup Second Qualifying Round ties this afternoon and, worryingly, the rules state that if an FA Cup tie is postponed today it must be rearranged for either tomorrow (Sunday) or Monday, if the rearranged tie isn’t completed by Monday then both Club's will forfeit their place in the competition. It's a ridiculous ruling isn't it and says it all about the current climate in football especially at Non League level:

[AlwaysLeighton]

Leighton’s game ON.

[Rhodes]

Half time score at Bell Close 2-1 to Leiston in an intriguing contest, Leiston were awarded an early spot kick which they converted and found themselves 2-0 up on 14 minutes however in typical fashion Joe Sweeney's men rolled up their sleeves and pulled a goal back on 28 minutes having the lions share of play towards the end of the first period, it's all to play for as the teams come back out. Slightly surprised that Connor Calcutt started on the bench however what an ace card to have up Joes sleeve and lets hope he delivers when he is thrown into the fray.

 

[Rhodes]

Heartbreak for Leighton Town this afternoon, a groundhopper from another Forum was at Bell Close:

Leighton Town 1 Leiston 2
FA Cup 2Q
Bell Close
Admission: £8
Programme: Only on line
Attendance: 300- sell out

Big shock was that we had no rain, a bit on the trip across from Ipswich but then stayed dry for the whole game. Liked the ground, enclosed feel, town centre near by.
Good table service in clubhouse and plenty of space to social distance.
Leiston, 2 divisions higher, started the quicker and were soon two up, with the first from the penalty spot. Leighton did pull one back in the 28th Minute.
Second half was very scrappy, Leiston did hit the post when their full back, Hammond joined the attack but other than that shot, the Suffolk side were very poor in the second half and were fortunate to keep their lead and progress to the next round.

[Rhodes]

The match programme from Bell Close this afternoon:

https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/files.pitchero.com/clubs/3144/kghnTFJqRRGYzFnpwuMD_TT vs Leiston.pdf

[Rhodes]

AlwaysLeighton has been conspicuous by his absence since Leighton Town's disappointing defeat to Leiston on Saturday, here are some photographs and Leiston's version of events and hopefully he will come on later today, it will be interesting to hear why Connor Calcutt wasn't brought on earlier than the 83rd minute:

https://www.leightontownfc.co.uk/teams/11587/match-centre/0-4934750/photos

https://www.leistonfc.co.uk/teams/54880/match-centre/0-4933457/report

Leighton Town: Kirkwood, Silford, Murphy, Fitzgerald, Towell (Calcutt 83 mins), Mealing, Frederick, McClelland, Campbell, (Adams 69 mins), Collier (Jewell 78 mins), Foulger. Subs not used: Resch, Osbourne, Boland, Rogers.

[Rhodes]

Would it have followed that Leighton Town would have hosted AFC Telford United at Bell Close in the Third Qualifying Round had they got through on Saturday. I see that Whyteleafe won 3-1 at Burnham this evening:

https://www.thenonleaguefootballpaper.com/latest-news/fa-competitions-more-news/31572/fa-cup-third-qualifying-round-draw-from-wembley-in-full/?utm_medium=onesignal&utm_source=push_notifications&utm_campaign=web_push

[Rhodes]

On 05/10/2020 at 23:38, Rhodes said:

Would it have followed that Leighton Town would have hosted AFC Telford United at Bell Close in the Third Qualifying Round had they got through on Saturday 

Sorry to rub Dead Sea salt into Leighton Town's wounds, and AlwaysLeighton's in particular, but I see that Leiston somehow managed to get through again last night against AFC Telford United, 9-8 on penalties, a groundhopper from another Forum was at their Victory Road Stadium. It could well have been Leighton Town in the Fourth Qualifying Round had they not gone two goals down so early at Bell Close and brought Connor Calcutt on much earlier in the tie:

Emirates FA Cup 3rd Round Qualifying
Leiston 0 AFC Telford Utd 0
Leiston won 9-8 on penalties
KO: 19:45 Att: 334 announced. Prog online
Admission: £11 adult cash. Tickets available in advance by doing a transfer into bank account. NHS T&T app with also a paper version.
Venue: Watson & Hillhouse Victory Road Stadium, Victory Road, Leiston

Match: 2 pts from 5 games, 21st out of 22 in Pitching In Southern League Premier Central Division (v) 4 pts from 2 games in Vanarama National League North
Weather: Rained most of the day in Ipswich & kept expecting to see the game had been postponed. It did pass a pitch inspection. I phoned the club just before departing. Some rain on the way but a bit roads drier in Leiston. 1st half was chilly due to the wind but I moved for the 2nd half where there was a lot less wind which made it feel better. Rained towards the end & heavy at times. Horrible drive home in the rain & plenty of surface water.
Report: Good 1st half which saw LEIS have a shot saved on 4mins after the ref played a good advantage. TELF shot just over on 16mins & LEIS did likewise on 32mins. TELF had a shot saved on 39mins. Shots 7-6.
H/t lasted under 17mins. LEIS shot just wide on 48mins & the game died a bit before TELF took control in the last 20mins with a shot saved on 74mins. An effortless looking shot gave the gk no chance but the ball struck the bar on 81mins. 5mins later a low shot hit the post. Surprised there was 6mins injury time & in that time the gk made a save on 93+mins. A good chance came & went when a rebound shot was stuck well off target. On 98+mins the last shot of the game went just wide. Shots 3-10.
The penalty shoot out saw LEIS go first. TELF had their 2nd one saved & LEIS had their 3rd one saved. LEIS gk took the 8th penalty & scored. TELF had their 10th penalty saved which meant LEIS had progressed to the next round.
https://programme.leistonfc.co.uk/media/2020-10-12-1-AFC_Telford_United_programme.pdf

[Rhodes]

I see in Leiston's match programme, following the FA Cup Second Qualifying Round tie at Bell Close, there was a report on the tie and also see their Official match report, the Suffolk Club couldn't believe their luck in getting through despite taking that early two goal lead:

Last Saturday, we were on the road again, this time in the FA Cup 2nd Qualifying Round, and played Leighton Town FC. It’s interesting, we had met our opposition a few years ago in the same competition, drawing at home after being 2-0 down. In the replay, we excelled ourselves winning 5-2 with former stalwart Gareth Heath equalising in the home tie and notching a brace in the replay win. Leighton ply their trade at Step 5, so on paper this was a good draw for us. However, our managers were treating the opposition with the greatest respect. We arrived at the ground later than anticipated, but I suppose we can blame the unfortunate ‘bollard’ in the road leading into Leighton Buzzard. But that’s a story for another day. On arrival, the pitch looked good with only a couple of blemishes in front of the seated stand. Apparently, this was due to badgers getting into the pitch (I believe Finley was unfortunate enough to get his boot caught at least once or twice in the first half). We started really well and after a few minutes we were awarded a penalty for a foul on Will Davis. Liam Jackson dispatched the penalty with ease, and we were playing some excellent football. So, it was no surprise when we increased the lead following a nice cross from Liam Jackson for Will Davis to hammer home. It would be fair to say most people in the ground thought the match was won at this stage, but it was not to be. Leighton started to press us, and from a needlessly given-away free kick and in a goal mouth scramble, one of their strikers was able to poke the ball home. Leighton were then on top, and we were not sorry to hear the half-time whistle blown. If I am totally honest, we didn’t turn up in the second half, and Leighton pushed us really hard, with our defence working overtime, particularly our keeper, who made some very good saves. A rare second-half attack from us, following a good run by Kyle Hammond, ended up with his shot hitting the post and rebounding to safety. So, we ended up victors by two goals to one. I recall a former manager of Leiston saying it’s better to win 2-1 and not play well than to lose 2-1 but play brilliantly, because the result in the paper the following day will read Leighton Town FC 1 Leiston 2, and that’s what people remember – me included. We have been handed a tough, but exciting draw in the 3rd Qualifying Round against National League North AFC Telford. The tie will be played on Tuesday 13 October with a 7.45 kick-off.

https://programme.leistonfc.co.uk/media/2020-10-07-2020-10-06-AFC_R&D_programme.pdf

https://www.leistonfc.co.uk/teams/54880/match-centre/0-4933457/report

[Rhodes]

Just posting the FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round draw should anybody be interested. Again the ridiculous ruling applies whereby National League, National League North and National League South Club's are classed as 'Elite' and therefore Elite Club v Elite Club = no fans, Elite Club v Non Elite Club = no fans, Non Elite Club v Elite Club = home fans only and Non Elite Club v Non Elite Club = home and away fans. Chorley are the lucky Club, receiving a bye into the First Round proper due to Macclesfield Town's demise and £9,375 in prize money as well as a similar amount as guaranteed prize money for losing First Round Club's, what's the betting they draw Sunderland away:

[Rhodes]

Just an update on the FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round should anybody be interested, had Leighton Town beaten Leiston and then AFC Telford at Bell Close they would have been hosting Barnet tomorrow who have nine first team regulars missing following a Covid-19 outbreak at The Hive, Joe Sweeney's men could then have found themselves in the First Round proper and a lucrative tv tie if drawn at home to a League Club. It's heartbreaking to see so many ties tomorrow being played behind closed doors on what is normally one of the special days of the season and Hemel Hempstead Town and Lee Bircham for example aiming to reach the First Round proper for only the second time in the Vauxhall Road Club's history:

Edited October 24, 2020 by Rhodes

[Rhodes]

Just posting the FA Cup First Round proper draw that would have seen Leighton Town host Burton Albion had they beaten Leiston, I strongly believe that Joe Sweeney's men would have then gone on to beat AFC Telford United in the Third Qualifying Round and then a heavily depleted Barnet side at a reverberating Bell Close last Saturday in the Fourth Qualifying Round. Obviously we will never know for sure however Leiston were like lambs to the slaughter in that second period at Bell Close and Leighton Town sadly didn't take advantage and put them to the sword. Also, sorry to go on about former SSML Club Haringey Borough but losing 1-0 last Saturday at Maldon & Tiptree has cost them a fortune as although, ridiculously, no fans are allowed at any First Round tie, the visit of Morecambe to Coles Park would have no doubt been televised, it's also a winnable tie with the League Two side only progressing past the First Round proper stage three times in their history since becoming a League Club in 2007/08: