Westfield v Badshot Lea
Westfield 1-1 Badshot Lea (Westfield Won 4-3 On Penalties)
ADFA Saturday Senior Cup Final
Tuesday 7th May 2024
The Recreation Ground, Aldershot, Hampshire, England
Badshot Lea suffered penalty shoot-out heartbreak as they were beaten 4-3 on penalties by Westfield after a 1-1 draw in the Aldershot Senior Cup final at National League Aldershot Town’s EBB Stadium.
Josh Keeya’s 31st-minute penalty had given the Baggies the lead, but Westfield skipper Andy Crossley’s 36th-minute equaliser was enough to take the tie to penalties.
The Baggies created the first chance of the evening in the 15th minute. Anuar Ceesay delivered a good ball in from the right which dropped to Cam Rohart-Brown just outside the box, but Rohart-Brown’s powerful shot went just over the bar.
Badshot Lea went close again on 21 minutes when the ball was worked out to Nick Medcraft on the right, but his shot was well blocked.
Westfield were forced into an early change on the half-hour mark when Caleb Wright went off injured and was replaced by Tobi Adaje.
The Baggies won a penalty in the 31st minute when Medcraft’s through ball struck a Westfield hand in the box. Keeya stepped up and sent Yellas keeper Sonny Wheeler the wrong way as he coolly rolled his penalty into the bottom left-hand corner.
Westfield responded positively to falling behind and equalised on 36 minutes when Yellas skipper Crossley’s inswinging corner deceived Baggies keeper Harry Cawdron and went straight into the top corner.
Badshot Lea nearly regained the lead in the 38th minute when Kareem Akinnibi burst through, but Wheeler was out quickly to narrow the angle and block Akinnibi’s effort.
The Yellas nearly went ahead in first-half stoppage time when Jamarie Brissett was through one-on-one with Cawdron, but the Baggies keeper made a sharp save to keep out Brissett’s low shot.
Westfield went close again four minutes into the second half when Adaje cut in from the left and unleashed a powerful shot which hit the top of the Baggies’ crossbar.
The second half was an absorbing affair as both sides pushed for a winner, although there weren’t many clear-cut chances created.
Baggies boss Gavin Smith freshened his side up by introducing substitutes Kai Allsopp, David Garlinge, Kojo Kyei, Dwayne Clarke and Jonathan Sanchez for Keeya, Baback Dehghani, Rohart-Brown, Akinnibi and Ceesay.
Westfield boss Ian Selley also introduced fresh legs in the second half, with Niran Butler, Samuel Bello-Balogun and Theo White coming on for Lewis Jackson, Manolis Gogonas and Alfie Huckle.
Both sides had chances to score a late winner. The Yellas went close in the 89th minute when Brissett’s powerful shot went just over the bar. Badshot Lea then nearly won the tie in stoppage time when Gargline’s shot was well saved by Wheeler at his near post.
The Baggies went close again in the 94th minute when a corner led to pinball in the Westfield penalty area, but the Yellas somehow managed to scramble the ball away to safety.
Neither side were able to find a winner and the final went to a penalty shoot-out.
Westfield skipper Crossley took the first penalty and blazed his effort over the bar. Medcraft was first up for the Baggies and dragged his penalty wide.
Jordan Alves took Westfield’s second penalty and sent Cawdron the wrong way as he confidently tucked his penalty into the bottom left-hand corner.
Hedley was up next for Badshot Lea and sent Wheeler the wrong way as he placed his penalty in the right-hand corner.
White fired his penalty into the bottom left-hand corner to put the Yellas 2-1 up in the shoot-out, before Baggies skipper Kane Fitzgerald sent Wheeler the wrong way and picked out the top left-hand corner to make it 2-2.
Butler picked out the top left-hand corner to put Westfield 3-2 up before Sanchez picked out the top right-hand corner to make it 3-3.
Archy Taylor picked out the left-hand corner to make it 4-3, before Lamin Ceesay saw his penalty saved to break the Baggies’ hearts.
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