 Larkhall AthleticCorsham Town 
3 - 1Full Time |
Recap
The Corsham side that lined up in blustery conditions in this first-round FA Cup tie against higher opposition saw wholesale changes from the team that won in midweek.
After a shaky start that saw early appeals from the Larkhall players for handling outside the box by the keeper Alfie Kesley, nothing was given by the man in the middle and Corsham settled into the game.
Neikel Plumber had our first attempt on goal but his effort was well over the bar. Then on 20 minutes, it all kicked off. Following a foul by Kane Simpson, in the ensuing melee of players, Neks was adjudged to have acted violently towards the Larkhall left-back who threw himself theatrically to the ground. The referee was very quick to brandish his red card without any consultation with his linesman and Corsham where down to 10.
The ugliness continued with another off-the-ball incident seeing Alfie Kelsey knocked to the ground which neither the referee nor the linesman appeared to see. Larkhall then got their first yellow card of many for a late tackle and the scrappy affair continued.
Larkhall finally made their advantage count with a powerful header from a corner 10 minutes before half time and just before the break a second meant the 10-man Quarrymen were facing a mountain to climb in the second half.
One change at the break saw Henry Sady replaced by Alfie Presley and Corsham started the second half well. Then another pivotal moment in the game came when the officials all managed to miss a blatant handball from the Larks full-back to bring the ball down and clear his lines.
Corsham still continued on the front foot but found it hard to break down a resolute Larkhall defence. They eventually pulled one back with great work down the left by Alfie Prestly who crossed for Jasper Jones to shoot home into the bottom corner and it was game on.
Larkhall where still making chances with their striker shooting well following a good cross from the right which was well saved by Alfie in our goal.
With ten minutes to go, Corsham was really knocking on the door but Kane Simpson couldn’t get the right connection on his shot after more superb work down the right by Dan Demkiv. With only a few minutes left on the clock a mix-up between the home keeper and defender nearly saw Alfie Presley capitalise but a covering defender clear on the line.
With Corsham throwing everything at them Larkhall broke and a header was adjudged to have crossed the line which sealed the win for the higher-tier side. 3-1
A bad ending to a miserable afternoon saw Corsham reduced to nine men with two bookings in as many minutes for sub-Brandon Munday.
A valiant effort as we finish the game with nine men against a team from the league above however our FA Cup campaign is over for another year and we wish the Larks all the best in the next round.
Details
| Date | Time | League | Season | Match Day | Full Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 5, 2023 | 3:00 pm | FA Cup | 2023-24 | 5th August 2023 | 90' |
Results
| Club | 1st Half | 2nd Half | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Larkhall Athletic | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Corsham Town | 0 | 1 | 1 |