3rd August 2024
Ipswich Wanderers vs Thetford Town @ Humber Doucy Lane - Ipswich
FA Cup Extra-Preliminary Round (Step 4 vs Step 5)
15:00 KO
£10 entry
Attendance - 158
Half-time score: Ipswich Wanderers 0-0 Thetford Town
Final Score: Ipswich Wanderers 0-0 Thetford Town
This afternoon saw Thetford Town travel back into Suffolk and down the A14 for two weeks in a row, this time to face Ipswich Wanderers for an FA Cup game that was originally drawn at Thetford. Due to the agreement with the cricket club for Saturday home games, and no possibility of rearranging the game for the Friday night, the only option was for the game to be played at Humber Doucy Lane. Last time Thetford Town were here in the 22/23 season, it was the battle of the top two teams, and despite Thetford Town going 2-0 up, a host of injuries and red cards saw Thetford slump to a 3-2 loss, from which Ipswich Wanderers marched on to win the league, many saw that as the pivotal game. Playing in the Isthmian North for the 23/24 season, they struggled at the start, but a rebuild saw them begin to pick up some form by the end to finish 17th and a long distance from the relegation zone. The team and staff are a lot different from when the sides last met, but add the magic of the FA Cup, the oldest and best football tournament in the world, this was set-up to be another good game.
It was a shame to see no printed programmes on offer, with only an online version available. The food looked brilliant, but having had a late brunch I was too full to contemplate anything which was a shame.
Despite the earlier showers in the day, the weather was near-perfect, clouds in the sky blocked the sun, and it was warm and calm, if a little humid. The teams walked down the retractable tunnel and lined up with Ipswich Wanderers in blue and white, and Thetford Town in claret and blue.
KEY MOMENTS
IW = Ipswich Wanderers
TT = Thetford Town
2' - TT - An early chance for Thetford, Haylett gets in down the right and puts a ball into the box, it is heading towards Elliot Smith at the near post but is deflected just wide of the post to concede a corner.
15' - TT - Diggens bursts down the right, he finds Gilchrist on the edge of the box who lays the ball back to the incoming King, the strike is hit first-time, low and heading into the bottom right corner, but keeper Brand gets down well to make the stop.
42' - TT - Gilchrist turns and shoots from the edge of the box, his lofted effort is covered well by keeper Brand.
43' - TT - Grove shows his blistering pace down the left and crosses in a ball, it is mis-hit but dropping into the top right corner of the goal, only kept out by the fingertips of keeper Brand at full-stretch, close!
45' - IW - Despite having the lions share of the possession, Ipswich Wanderers carve out their first decent chances just before half-time. From a corner, captain Kris Rose's header is spectacularly kept out by Dickerson, tipping the ball over the bar mid-dive. This is shortly followed-up by a fizzing ball into the box, but Salau is unable to flick the ball in with the net begging in-front of him.
66' - TT - A tight half with both defences on top, Ipswich with the majority of the possession but with Thetford creating chances on the break. The best comes in the 66th minute from a King corner, it is curled in to the far-post, Elliot Smith heads towards goal, but he is leaning back and unable to generate enough power to beat Brand who is able to collect the looping ball.
A brilliant performance by Thetford Town against their higher league opposition. They were resilient and defended valiantly to limit Ipswich Wanderers to very few half-chances, and crafted the better chances of the game, earning a replay this coming Tuesday back at Mundford Road. Despite the 0-0 scoreline, it was a good watch from a Thetford perspective, with captain Sam Bond marshalling the team well all game, and to a man they pressed brilliantly and were strong in the challenge, much improved over the Great Yarmouth Town defeat. Big chance for Thetford Town to complete the job on Tuesday against tough opponents, and get through to the next round of the FA Cup, UP THE TOWN!!!
EDIT - it would now appear that the replay will be hosted at Ipswich Wanderers......Under FA rules, this was our 'home game' the fact the venue had to move doesn't matter, so the replay is at Ipswich Wanderers. Seems a stupid rule to me that does not factor in the fans, having to travel all the way back to the same ground, as well as the players who also travelled and battled hard for the draw, in this case against a higher level team. May as well just have gone to pens today in all honesty. Thetford Town always seem to be on the receiving end of this kind of stuff, bloody frustrating in all honesty. I wonder what other surprises are going to be in store this season for us....
Line-Ups:
IPSWICH WANDERERS: Craig Brand, Jack Madley, Lewis Kincaid, Chris Casement, George Forrest, Kris Rose (C), Charley Barker, Dylan Kirk, Kai Fletcher, Rashid Salau, Zach Pedro. SUBS: Ollie Sims, Iuri Fernandes, Warren Burwood, Romano Capasso.
THETFORD TOWN: Ryan Dickerson, Ryan Haylett, Dylan Grove, Jaydyn Lott, Sam Bond (C), Callum Olpin, Jake Mann, Cameron King, George Diggens, Elliot Smith, Dan Gilchrist. SUBS: Tom Smith, Kieran Money, Santi Davies, Liam Levy-Twomey, Malachi Wright, Marley Reynolds.
Comentarios