ROYSTON TOWN FC v BEACONSFIELD TOWN FC
Saturday 5th October 2019
History was re-written as The Crows reached the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup for the first time.
With Beaconsfield also looking to create history, the first half was a particularly tense affair with both sides struggling to find any rhythm. The first glimpse of goal for either side arrived in the 23rd minute, as Josh Castiglione headed a Scott Bridges cross over the bar. The next opportunity arrived in the 29th minute and this time Castiglione was in clinical mood, as he executed a fine curling finish after good work from Matt Bateman.
The lead lasted less than 10 minutes though, as Brendan Matthew too easily wriggled free of the home defence to set up Tyrell Mitford, whose finish was reminiscent of the Castiglione effort and saw the sides go into the break on an equal footing.
The second half saw the Crows begin to get a real grip on the game and it was they who started to dominate as Beaconsfield looked happy to try and force a replay. Despite the greater share of possession, Royston struggled to create any real opportunities, as Beaconsfield defended resolutely, snuffing out most of what the home side offered.
The first effort of the half, in the 59th minute, saw a long-range effort from Bateman repelled by away keeper Myles Bowman, who was equally alert to the follow-up effort from Brandon Adams, to keep the scores level.
Bateman wasn’t to be denied though, as he pounced on a loose ball in the Beaconsfield defence to strike the winner. Having collected the wayward pass, a dummy created the half yard of space required and Bateman slotted a left-foot effort into the corner of the net, to the delight of the home crowd.
Now having to chase the game, the away side used their 3 substitutions, but Royston’s game management was excellent, as they continued to control the situation and looked the more likely to score. With time nearly up Bowman made another good double save this time denying Claudio Ofosu and that man Bateman again. With 90 minutes on the clock Ofosu again nearly scored, as he jinked past 3 defenders, before poking his shot fractionally wide of the post.
With injury time now being played, Beaconsfield won a couple of free-kicks in dangerous areas. The first one ended with an easy save for Joe Welch, the second caused a couple of heart-stopping moments, as first Spyros Mentis was well-positioned to clear off the line before Adam Murray blocked the follow-up effort.
With time up, the referee signalled the end of the game and the large crowd, swelled by a healthy number of vocal Royston Town Youth players, celebrated the historical win with the jubilant players and management.
Royston: 1-Welch, 2-Asafu-Adjaye, 3-Brathwaite ©, 4-Bridges, 5-Murray, 6-Crowther, 7-Castiglione (14-Knight 84), 8-Green (16-Mentis 67), 9-Adams (12-Joseph 67), 10-Bateman, 11-Ofosu
Unused: 15-Martin, 17-Nolan, 18-Smart (GK)
MOM: Matt Bateman
| ROYSTON TOWN | BEACONSFIELD TOWN | |
| 7 | EFFORTS ON TARGET | 3 |
| 6 | EFFORTS OFF TARGET | 0 |
| 5 | BLOCKED SHOTS | 2 |
| 10 | FREE KICKS AWARDED | 17 |
| 6 | CORNERS | 4 |
| 1 | YELLOW CARDS | 1 |
| 0 | RED CARDS | 0 |
This match report is kindly sponsored by Lounge India.
Lounge India is an exceptional Indian Restaurant based in Royston. They take great pride and care in every aspect of producing the food from their wide an varied menu and also the service. The authentic cooking methods used by their highly skilled and experienced chefs guarantee mouth-watering and memorable dishes. Lounge India insist on using only the finest natural ingredients in their dishes and each is cooked fresh to order. For more details visit Lounge India
