RYAN LEADS FROM THE BACK FOR 1874

WINDSOR saw off Hamble Club with a goal in either half to settle a clash of two well-matched sides.

Goals either side of the break from Riccardo Cannon and Jack Denton proved enough to send the Royalists into the last eight in this clash between the sides who sit in ninth place in their respective Hellenic League and Wessex Premier divisions.

The hosts had the first effort, an early shot from Denton that deceived goalkeeper Rory Anderson who had to stretch to make what had seemed to be a fairly routine save.

Next to try his luck was Cannon, but he was just wide with a header from a free-kick.

Hamble’s first speculative effort came from Nathan Lynch but his overhead flick cleared the crossbar by some distance.

Indeed Denton proved a real handful and on 23 minutes fired a shot which took a deflection and narrowly missed the far post.

Five minutes later, he set up the opening goal with a good run and inch-perfect ball into the middle of the six-yard box, where Cannon was well placed to turn the it into the net.

The best chance the Monks created in the first half came four minutes before the break, but Charlie Wagstaff mis-hit his shot and it trundled wide.

Windsor moved into the comfort zone six minutes after the restart when Denton picked up the ball near to the halfway line, ran with purpose towards oal and fired a low shot just inside the far post that gave Anderson no chance.

The arrival of substitute Doug Rowe lifted the Hampshire visitors and he linked up well with Ben Kemplen, but could not keep his effort down.

The only time Windsor stopper Hugo Sobte had to do any work of note came in the 76th minute when he was quickly off his line to take the ball away Hamble sub Jack McCarthy’s feet.

Hamble had one further effort on target, but it would not have counted as Rowe was adjudged to have pushed his marker at a corner as he headed at goal.

CENTRE-HALF Ryan Mitchell forced home a minute from time to send 1874 Northwich into the last eight.

A tight battle ensured chances had been at a premium until a rush of bodies to the near post cleared the path for Mitchell to become the hero from a late corner, sending the North West Counties League Premier Division outfit into the quarter-finals in only their fifth season since forming.

There was little pattern to the play in a nip-andtuck opening, but 1874 gradually grew into the game and made much of the running during the opening 20 minutes.

The home side kept plugging away and should have moved ahead after half an hour when Scott McGowan got in behind with only Chichester City goalkeeper Anthony Ender to beat, but could not find a way through.

Bright passages of play and plenty of promise continued to come Northwich’s way, only for the killer instinct to desert them in the final third and they nearly got hit by a sucker punch twice before half-time by their visitors from the Southern Combination Premier Division.

The ball was worked into Chichester’s Kieran Hartley who was afforded the chance to pull the trigger from all of 30 yards and he rattled the crossbar with a driven, improvised effort.

Two minutes later, the Lilywhites darted in behind again as Jimmy Wild ghosted past a couple of challenges and unleashed a stinging leftfooted shot that home keeper Greg Hall had to be alert to beat around the upright.

Shelton Payne was introduced by the hosts at half-time but the opening part of the second half was more even as Chichester supported the previously-isolated Wild more in attack.

After an initial flurry, things died down with Payne being 1874’s brightest spark out wide and it came as no surprise when the substitute played a part in the breakthrough.

Payne’s awkward shot forced visiting keeper Ender to deflect wide for a corner.

When the set-piece came, it flew over everyone at the near post and opened up a golden opportunity for Mitchell to keep his cool and crash home at the death.