Wilks Park, 16th August 2008

The FA Cup continued its trend of bringing the best out of Wootton Bassett Town as they forced Hellenic Premier side Flackwell Heath into a replay after a 1-1 draw.

It could have been a shock win though, but Matt Rolfe pooped that party with a last minute equaliser, powerfully heading home from a perfectly placed Adam Morris free kick.

On the balance of play, Glynn's goal was a deserved one as his side dominated in terms of possession and played some sublime football, knocking the ball about with much confidence.

However, they endured a frustrating day as their visitors more than rose to the challenge and limited their chances with some brilliant defending; Stewart Thompson was certainly thankful as he had a quieter day than he would have expected to have.

Inside the opening ten minutes, both sides had come close to breaking the deadlock. Nathan Jack flashed a powerful left footed drive just past the right post before a delightful chipped Shaun Terry through ball set Ryan Banks free at the other end. However, his first time drive sailed wide when he had the chance to bear down on goal.

Bassett were slightly wasteful when they possessed the ball in the opening 45 minutes, but having to adjust to the frenetic pace Flackwell were setting, that was no surprise.

They were very nearly made to pay for squandering the ball with just under 20 minutes gone when Jack was able to advance with the midfield caught out and he eventually teed up Riccardo Cannon, but his weak effort was easily collected by Thompson.

The Bassett 'keeper was then beaten just before the break, however he had the left upright to thank as Cannon's glancing header rebounded off it after Richie Glynn had redirected a Leigh Mason corner back into the danger area.

The visitors settled well after the restart and began looking like the more dangerous of the two sides.

Debutant Adam Field forced a fine save from Carl Dennison with a shot from a tight angle, following another incisive pass from Banks. A heavy first touch cost Field though as it allowed the ball to run away from him, but still the Flackwell 'keeper was made to work to keep the score deadlocked.

At the other end, it continued to be a frustrating day in front of goal for the home side. Bassett's centre back pairing of Chris Oram and Shaun Carter were seemingly impregnable, whilst full backs Richie Carter – a half time replacement for captain Luke Sharps, who sustained a knock – and Luke Preston were giving their wide men little room to manoeuvre.

All Flackwell managed to muster from open play were wayward long range efforts or shots which were blocked. A rasping free kick from Jack forced a save out of Thompson, but that was basically it for the irritated hosts.

The score, therefore, looked as though it would remain how it started. But that was until Craig Shand found the back of the net for Bassett.

Banks again set things in motion with a lofted pass to Terry. The tricky front man brought the ball down and rode a strong challenge before poking the ball square to an unmarked Shand.

His fellow former Hungerford teammate sent a low effort towards goal, which Dennison got a glove too, but the 'keeper couldn't do enough to prevent from trickling over the line. A second seemed on the cards for Shand moments later as he went for glory from range with Dennison stranded, but he sent the ball agonizingly wide.

From this emerged fresh emergency within the Flackwell ranks and Rolfe spared their blushes with under 60 seconds of normal time to go. It was a delicious delivery from the deep by Morris, but an unstoppable header from the centre back.

Scoop's Man of the Match: Shaun Carter – was a commanding figure at the heart of defence for Bassett as he – along with partner Chris Oram – made life as miserable as possible for Flackwell's front two.

Scoop Rating: 8/10 – it was disappointing to concede the late equaliser, but in the end it was a fair result following great performances from both sides. Flackwell played the football, but Bassett answered back with a spirited display to thwart their opponents.

Last modified on Monday 22nd June 2015 at 23:38