Victory for Nomads in extra time

The Nomads progressed to the second round of theWord Cup on Tuesday evening, defeating Guilsfield by three goals to nil.  After 90 goalless minutes, extra time was played, in which Nick Rushton and Sean Miller secured a late win for their side.

This was an anticipated game for both sides, as it heralded the first cup competition of the 2015/16 season.  A competition between all 12 WPL Clubs, the top eight clubs from both feeder leagues plus four wildcard entries, theWord Cup is the recognised league cup competition of Wales.

The Nomads started a strong side, fronted by Les Davies and Ashley Ruane.  A notable name in the lineup was also Corey Roper, who was making his debut for The Nomads since signing for the club from Wrexham last week.  The Guils also started a side which were soon to prove their worth against Welsh Premier League opposition, featuring the likes of Andrew Ford and Adam Jenkins.

The game began at a rapid pace, with Les Davies launching a run down the wing only to be tackled by the staunch home defence.  The Nomads again pressed with two consecutive corners, which were handled well by Guilsfield keeper Dave Littleford.

Ashley Ruane then came close to a superb finish, nearly lobbing the 'keeper with a curling effort high towards goal.  Despite these chances from The Nomads, Guilsfield had a substantial reply with chances such as Adam Jenkin’s run from the halfway line to six yards off The Nomads' goal, where he forced Danby to make a save.

Following this was a flurry of chances for the home side which on two or three occasions saw them go only inches away from a goal.  At the interval, the score remained 0-0, but the home side had plenty to feel confident about after a solid first half performance.

After the games resumption, Guilsfield were once again off the mark with a low shot that looked to have beaten Danby, but went past his left post and out for a goal kick.  Against continuing attacks, substitutions were made for The Nomads with Wilson and Gaul replaced by Crowther and Miller.

The night was proving to be a frustrating one for Ashley Ruane, who went clear on goal numerous times but was denied on each of these occasions by the assistant referee’s flag.  Before the games normal time was up, both sides had opportunities to score but could not take them – Sean Miller having a low effort saved by Littleford.

After a 90 minutes in which both teams could have found their breakthrough, the referee blew his whistle to confirm it was extra time at Clos Myton. 10 minutes into the first half of added extra time, a further and soon to be vital sub was made, when Nick Rushton replaced Ashley Ruane.

In the 100th minute, substitute Rushton finally broke the deadlock when he cut into the Guils final third and sent a low shot from the right hand side of the area into the bottom corner of the home net.

With their goal finally found, The Nomads clicked into gear and got their second of the night through Sean Miller who surged forward and hit his effort into the bottom right corner of the net on 104 minutes.

The Nomads now had less pressure on themselves in the second half of AET, but the cup tie drama had not ended as Callum Morris then received a second yellow card and was dismissed from the field.

The final event of the evening was The Nomads' third goal, which saw Nick Rushton go clear in front of goal with enough time and space to chip the 'keeper, confirming his brace and ensuring The Nomads' progression to the second round of theWord cup.

Tuesday evening saw a great cup tie in which the hosts may well have gone onto to win on another day.  The Nomads went home as one of only a few victorious Welsh Premier sides, with Bangor, Newtown and Rhyl all knocked out by lower league opposition.

The Nomads will await their next opponents in theWord cup, to be announced on Thursday afternoon, but now look onto Friday evening when they travel to Maes Tegid, facing Bala Town at 7:30pm.