Report

The Army 3 – 3 Benhall AET (Army win 5- 4 on pens)

It was a break from the league campaign for the Army this afternoon as they welcomed fellow division 2 side Benhall St Mary in round two of the Touchline Cup. The Army were without regulars Coleman, Nunn and Rose so in came Rob Moye, Jake Stannard and Tyrone Scarfe. Skipper Lewis Stannard could not make the early kick off due to family commitments so he joined Rogers and Joe Cross on the bench. With Stannard out of the starting eleven Paul Gunton took the skippers armband.

It was a new look team for the Army with Steve Harvey partnering Jon Doughty at the back and Rob Moye forming a new central midfield partnership with Leighton Ankin. Benhall's threat isn't difficult to spot as their two central midfielders are both 6ft 4 so the Army knew they had to be busy picking up second balls off the flick ons. The Army started the game well with Moye and Ankin doing some great work in the centre of the park and Frappell and Winfield starting link up going forward. Winfield was the first to see the whites of the posts but the striker hit his volley wide from outside the box following some good link up play between Ankin and Frappell.

The away side had one or two good moments in the opening twenty minutes but Watling and the Army defence dealt with everything that came their way. The Army were forced into an early change when Grocott had to be replaced following a nasty clash that saw the left back's knee suffer some severe swelling. On came Lewis Stannard on the left hand side of midfield and his younger brother Jake dropped to left back.

Jake Stannard had a great game at left back and it was his driving run that lead the Army's first goal. The Army had a throw level with the penalty area with was partially cleared to Stannard. Having collected the ball Stannard ran straight at the heart of the Benhall defence skipping past two challenges before firing a good shot which the keeper blocked. However the ball fell straight to WINFIELD who still had plenty to do but the striker made it look easy by firing a powerful first time shot straight into the unguarded goal.

At 1 – 0 up the Army started to play really well. Lewis Stannard was a constant threat down the left wing and the attacking link up between him, Frappell and Winfield was very promising. However the Army didn't get any more goals in the first half but manager Rogers was well pleased with the effort and quality shown.

The second half saw the Army continue to dominate and play some really excellent stuff. They got themselves 2-0 up after Lewis Stannard broke again down the left wing thanks to a great ball from his brother Jake and his low cross was just missed by Frappell but ANKIN was on hand to convert from 6 yards out.

Rogers made his second change by replacing Scarfe with Cross at right back as Benhall looked to respond. The visitors pushed further forward as the second half progressed and they deservedly got themselves a goal back following a smart run and finish from their lively wide man. In true cup style spirit the visitors were throwing the kitchen sink at the Army but Harvey and Doughty were immense at the heart of the defence. At the other end Frappell had the chance to extend the lead when he went round the keeper but his finish lacked conviction and the defender was able to clear of the line. However Benhall were rewarded for the perseverance and got a late equaliser when the striker nipped in to intercept a headed back pass and chip the advancing Watling.

Rogers was forced into a late change when Ankin pulled up injured so the manager himself came into the midfield area. At the full time whistle it was all square so the game went into extra time. Unfortunately for The Army Lewis Stannard got an injury so the Army were effectively playing with 10 men. The extra time was cagey with very little good football being played from either side. There were no goals in the first period but Benhall took the lead for the first time all afternoon with only a couple of minutes remaining when their quick striker cut in from the right before firing a low left foot shot past Watling. It seemed as though that would be the killer blow but the game had one more twist in store. Winfield hurled a long throw into the Benhall area which Gunton managed to control and find a pass to ROGERS who let fly with a left foot pile driver into the top corner. So with the scores at 3-3 the sides went to penalties. Frappell, Doughty, Gunton and keeper Watling all converted their spot kicks but the fourth taker for Benhall blasted his kick way over the bar. This gave Winfield the chance to seal the victory for the Army and despite clearly having some jitters Winfield fired his penalty past the keeper.

So the Army march on into the third round. It was another good performance from the team who at times played some exceptional stuff. At the back Harvey, Doughty and Jake Stannard all had great games as did the whole midfield so there were plenty of candidates for man of the match. But after much deliberation Jed Winfield gets the nod today for a goal scoring display and for keeping his nerve when converting the final spot kick.