25^th October 2022, Runcorn Linnets FC v Prescot Cables : 3-2

Linnets embarked upon the first of two county cup campaigns, with the visit of Prescot Cables for the first round of the Liverpool Senior Cup.

Cables would be formidable opposition, being one of the three teams to inflict a league defeat on Linnets so far this season. They have also appeared in the last four Senior Cup finals, albeit not since 2019, due to the calendar disruption of the Covid pandemic.

The Runcorn team was strengthened, from the bare bones line-up for the turgid 1-1 draw at Glossop North End three days earlier, with the return of Lewis Doyle from a one-match suspension, and Louis Hayes.

The latter was able to appear, with two games left of a three-match ban for his controversial red card at Workington because NPL suspensions do not apply to county cup fixtures.

Eden Gumbs was also back in the squad after a weekend absence, although he was not to emerge from the bench.

A brisk but scrappy start suggested that both sides were not viewing the event as a sideshow. Both defences, with solid holding midfield presences in front of them, had more influence on the first quarter of an hour than either set of forwards.

Sidi Sanogo and James Hooper were both engaged in more attacking roles than at Glossop, where they deputised deeper for Doyle and Hayes. Sidi had a good chance after seven minutes, when a stray defensive ball across the area gave him open season for a shot. He fired straight at Cables 'keeper Harvey Passant, the younger brother of Marine and former Linnets custodian Bayleigh, when he had more of the goal to aim at.

Cables No.9 John Murphy was a threatening presence on the ball in the Linnets half, but centre-back partners O'Mahony and Heathcote frustrated his efforts to open up the defence, in conjunction with Foley and Goodwin.

Lewis Doyle had a stab at goal from outside the area on 13 minutes, after Sean O'Mahony had pulled a ball back from James Short's free-kick on the left. Passant wasn't unduly tested by it.

Murphy attempted a header from a throw-in on the left, resulting from a mishit Danny Taberner clearance, but he couldn't get behind it, and it skidded wide.

Almost 20 minutes had expired when the game saw its first two corners, both for Cables, from the left. O'Mahony was impeded illegally as he jumped to defend the second, and danger was averted.

Through the middle of the first half, Cables were securing more possession, and the ball was spending more time in the Linnets half than in their own but the home defence and midfield remained secure.

When the hosts did get forward, James Hooper was proving an increasing handful for the visitors. A promising triangular move with Sanogo and Doyle was eventually thwarted by Liam Hollett and James Hammill.

In the 25th minute, Zack Clarke made a solo break into the left half of the Cables area, with Ally Brown, making his 101st Runcorn appearance, screaming for the ball as he charged up the right flank. Zack opted for a low shot, but Passant gathered it easily enough.

Hooper played a neat ball forward into the area for Ryan Brooke, but he was a yard offside.

The two sides were largely cancelling each other out, as had been the case in Saturday's bore-draw in the Peaks, but there were encouraging signs that Linnets passing was looking more effective than on that off-day.

Just before the half-hour mark, Sidi Sanogo confirmed that impression in great style. A punched clearance from Tabs found Sidi, ten yards inside his own half. He shrugged off a robust challenge to reach the Cables half, and flighted a magnificent ball over two defenders, and ahead of James Hooper. Hoops slipped between the two men in away sky blue, picked up the ball and curled it beyond Passant into the top left corner.

The Runcorn lead had come slightly against the run of play, and it opened up a cagey game into an increasingly interesting cup-tie. That interest was to build only gradually, until a final eight minutes that dared the excellent midweek crowd of 454 to blink and miss something.

Both sides strove to get forward. A Linnets corner from the right was headed on long by Louis Shead, and into touch on the far side. Then a double save by Tabs at the other end conceded a corner, producing a scramble in the area that he pounced on to prevent a prompt equaliser.

Cables kept looking for one, and a good curling shot by Jack Goodwin from just outside the area, after turning inside Ally Brown, cleared the right-hand post by not very much.

Prescot would have been disappointed to be behind at half-time, after shading possession and territory before the break. They emerged for the second half with a determination to get level, and within two minutes of the restart, they did.

A corner, won by a surge up the left straight from kick-off, couldn't be met in the air by Kyle Sambor, due to Ryan Brooke holding him down. The referee had no hesitation in awarding a penalty, and Tabs was clutching at air as Foley planted the spot-kick firmly inside the left post.

The leveller threatened to settle the game into a more subdued affair again, but both sides applied themselves to getting ahead. It was more defence-to-defence than end-to-end, though, as chances were prevented and smothered at either end of the pitch.

In the 55th minute, a great Zack Clarke solo run up the left forced Murphy to concede a corner. James Short's flag kick was met by a Ryan Brooke volley that drew 'oohs' from the crowd behind the clubhouse goal, as it cleared the bar by inches.

Another promising attack, fashioned by Brooke and Hooper, led to a lengthy delay as Cables' Gregory and Murphy lay wounded in different parts of the penalty area.

Both injuries followed contact with nothing other than the ball. Gregory was struck at close quarters by a booming Sidi Sanogo shot from the 18-yard line, but it appeared that he had fallen awkwardly on his right arm or shoulder. Murphy was hurt as he fell to ground from heading away a cross, for what looked like a Linnets corner, although the referee restarted the game with a drop ball, to give Cables possession.

Attacking efforts by Brown and Clarke for Linnets, and Murphy and Owens for Cables, were ably defended to concede throw-ins and corners both ways, but none of them came close to producing a lead.

After 68 minutes, the best chance for some time came after a great long clearance by Tabs, finding Hooper wide on the right. He beat his man and cut into the area, and passed for a Brooke shot that was blocked. Sidi Sanogo picked up the loose ball and shot from inside the six-yard box, drawing a great point-blank save by Passant.

It was Sidi's last contribution of the night, as Dave Wild subbed him with Dapo Olarewaju. Wildy hailed Sidi as his star performer again, and confirmed that the 'breather' was always intended, to ensure he would be in prime condition for the FA Trophy on Saturday.

Dapo's status as a game-changer from the bench is well established, and he was to do it again, giving the Cables defence headaches across the width of the pitch.

A Hooper cross to Brooke was headed out for a corner from the right, which James Short curled beyond the far post and out.

Cables manager Kevin Lynch rang a change, with the introduction of Adam Hamill for Tom Owens, the former Linnets midfielder.

Linnets kept up the pressure, in their most dominant period of the game. A mix-up over a loose ball between Follett and Foley allowed Hooper to pick it up, and combine with Shorty to seek a way through on the left. They exchanged three or four touches each, until Hoops' attempted pass ran out for a throw-in.

A fine solo run up the left by Dapo beat three men, but the fourth and fifth ganged up to dispossess him.

After 79 minutes, Linnets U21 graduate Macauley Clifton made his first team home debut, having shone in a first appearance for half an hour at Glossop. Zack Clarke made way for him.

A minute later, the ball was in the Cables net, after Hooper and Brooke both had a stab in a crowded area. But the referee spotted an infringement that I couldn't identify, and gave Prescot a free-kick.

A rash of free-kicks were awarded to the visitors for apparently even challenges, while Ryan Brooke was tripped, with Lewis Doyle sprinting past and begging for a pass, but the man in black saw no misdemeanour.

Prescot had spent far less time in Runcorn territory in the second half than they had in the first, but with seven minutes of normal time remaining, they worked a moment of magic. James Short thought he had succeeded in guiding the ball out for a throw-in, 20 yards from the corner flag, but John Murphy backheeled the ball from the touchline, to the feet of Josh Gregory.

The Linnets defence was caught unawares as Gregory squared the ball across the area. Lewis Doyle slid in to intercept, but failed to make solid contact, and Jack Goodwin found himself in ample space to pick his spot, and find the bottom right corner of the net.

It had been an ironic game of two halves. Linnets had been second best before the break, but had led 1-0. They had been the more dominant team since conceding the penalty equaliser, but were on course to lose the second half 2-0, and the game 2-1.

Cables had shown more than enough defensive prowess to be able to see themselves through to the second round. But Linnets were not keen to see their first Liverpool Senior Cup tie become their last for the time being.

They threw everything forward, with Danny Taberner becoming a key provider. He responded to a number of back-passes not just with clearances, but with targeted long balls to Hooper and Olarewaju up either touchline.

One such long ball bounced awkwardly in the blustery wind, spinning off Joel Connolly's shin and looping over his head. Dapo picked it up for a clear run on goal. Harvey Passant charged off his line and threw himself at the Runcorn sub, in a bodycheck certain to attract a penalty and a red card. But the ball bounced free from the collision and found its way into the net.

The tie was level again, with five minutes remaining.

Neither side wanted a penalty shoot-out, and both threw themselves forward as soon as they got hold of the ball. But both defences kept the shutters down, and everybody prepared themselves for a 12-yard tie-breaker.

The game was passing into added time when that outcome was averted.

Linnets were awarded a free-kick just inside the right touchline, 30 yards out. Short lofted it into the penalty area, where Brooke chested the ball down, turned, and shot. It rebounded off Gregory, and was picked up by Hooper. He feignted past Hollett to his left, and fired through a gap between Passant and the post that was almost exactly the same width as the ball.

The Murdishaw Massive rejoiced at a defeat turned into a victory, in the space of seven minutes. And Hoops took the applause for a Dron and Dickson man of the match performance, as he was substituted by Isaac Turner.

In four minutes of added time, Linnets remained on the offensive, and Dapo Olarewaju's determination to match Hooper's goal tally won two more corners. The second preceded the final whistle by seconds, and Linnets' involvement in a second county cup competition, which was oddly not popular with everyone, had been fully vindicated.

The last few minutes of the night's action had provided more excitement than the whole of the trip to Derbyshire on the preceding weekend.

A breathless late turnaround will always put smiles on fans' faces, but Dave Wild was highly critical of his side's performance, apart from returning to their 'blistering best' over those decisive last few minutes. He added that major improvements would be necessary to make FA Trophy progress agains Belper Town, a team from the division above, albeit currently propping up the NPL Premier table.

The next round of the Liverpool Senior Cup will take us to Bootle for a clash with City of Liverpool, who had prevailed at Burscough in a penalty shoot-out.

Runcorn Linnets: Danny Taberner, Ally Brown, James Short, Lewis Doyle, Sean O'Mahony, Sam Heathcote, James Hooper (Isaac Turner 90), Louis Hayes, Ryan Brooke, Sidi Sanogo Fofana (Dapo Olarewaju 69), Zack Clarke (Macauley Clifton 79). Subs not used: Eden Gumbs, Josh Roberts.

Attendance: 454.

NB. The views expressed herein are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Runcorn Linnets FC or its Board.