Casuals Advance In Trophy
- Cameron Smith
- Oct 8, 2017
- 3 min read
It was a slick finish from Josh Uzun and an almighty header from the jubilant Jack Strange that sealed Corinthian-Casuals a place in the next round of the FA Trophy, after defeating the ten-men of AFC Dunstable 2-0 at King George’s.
There were places for newbie Omari Delgado-Hibbert, Max Oldham and the in-form Ben Cheklit on the bench as a frontline of Jordan Clarke, Reyon Dillon and Danny Cunningham walked out onto the carpet of the King George’s Field. The typical chocolate & pink of Casuals kick-started the Trophy tie versus the blue shirts of Evo-Stik League South side Dunstable. Based in Bedfordshire, the OD’s let Casuals know they weren’t just there to partake in the festivities of Non-League Day as their physical and intimidating style of play was established from the off.
However, the hosts did not seem fazed, and took their first real opportunity very well. Two assists on Thursday night had clearly boosted the morale of powerhouse Dillon, who controlled the ball with ease, before slipping the ball past the Dunstable back four and allowing Josh Uzun a clear shot on goal. The no.7 slotted the ball low into the bottom right corner of the helpless goalkeeper; Casuals were 1-0 up inside ten minutes. Uzun punched the air in a low-key celebration before getting straight back to work.
Threatening again, a Coskun Ekim shot was swallowed by goalkeeper Jamie Head following build-up from the pacey Jordan Clarke. Dunstable were a strange side to play against as repeated fouls seemed to be on purpose, in attempt to anger Corinth. So when the first booking of the game was given to Casuals centre-back Tommy Smith, Bracken had the right to be irritated.
Despite their over-zealousness, the visitors had a relatively strong defence that managed to keep out a strike-force bursting with creativity. So when the half-time whistle blew, Dunstable would be pleased that they had only conceded one.
Six minutes into the second-half, Dunstable’s slim but visible chances disappeared. A single tackle on Josh Uzun had effectively ended the Evo-Stik side’s FA Trophy chances. At first, it was a ripple of shock that swept across King George’s Field as James Bishop lunged into a bizarre two-footed challenge that not only missed the ball completely, but made clear contact with fellow no7 Uzun on the halfway line. The ripples of shock turned into ripples of anger in the Casuals end; the contingent demanded a red card whilst the handbags were out on the pitch- Casuals players infuriated with the shocking ‘tackle’. After the argument died down, the referee Jim Paterson reached for his red card and gave it to Bishop, who exited without any appeals.
The remainder of the second-half was nearly completely dominated by Corinthians. A high and wide Dillon effort, a Cunningham shot that smacked off the post following a superb Clarke run and another Cunningham chance- this time it was cleared off the line- made up the twenty-minute period between the dismissal and the second-goal. Uzun, who miraculously continued playing after being the victim of the reckless Dunstable challenge, whipped a perfect corner into the crowded penalty area in the 73rd minute. The corner seemed to go in slow-motion as one-by-one, the Casuals supporter realised that Jack Strange was peeling away from his marker and was rising into the air to meet the cross.
Ever since the season opener, it had been an oddity to how Strange was not able to score a header from set-pieces after dozens of opportunities, and the Casuals fans knew that. So when Strange connected with the corner, there was a universal intake of breath amongst the supporters behind the goal. Reality was restored when Strange’s header found the back of the net, and the centre-back ran behind the goal to celebrate with supporters in pure jubilance. His teammates joined him, and the win was albeit sealed- Strange had finally scored his header, and Casuals were 2-0 up!
One last celebration was in the dying minutes, when Dunstable no.9 Bernie Christie sprinted through on goal, with Danny Bracken in an awkward position. But, England’s no.1 was brilliantly practical as he use his feet to keep out Christie and maintain a clean sheet. Full-time at King George’s saw Casuals progress into the next round of the FA Trophy, thanks to a 2-0 victory over Dunstable.
To raise money for Prostate Cancer UK on Non-League Day, legendary Casuals supporter Roger Stringer organised a crossbar challenge for fans (and players!) to participate in, which saw £290 raised! Top work, from a top man! Next on the agenda for the Casuals is a trip to Cray Wanderers in the league… will James Bracken’s pink and brown army be able to bounce back after the disappointing Greenwich loss on Tuesday?
Photo credit: Stuart Tree