Lilywhites through on penatlies

Mossley made it through to the Second Qualifying Round of the FA Cup on Tuesday after defeating NPL Premier side Whitby Town on penalties. 

The match was a replay of Saturday’s tie at Seel Park which ended in a 2-2 draw, with visitors Whitby coming from behind twice to keep their hopes alive. 

Tuesday’s showdown was equally as enthralling, but on this occasion, it was Mossley’s turn to mount a comeback. 

The Lilywhites found themselves two down after the man who scored a brace on Saturday, Stephen Walker, repeated the feat. 

The visitors were unable to break down the Whitby defence until the 80th minute when Bailey Marsden smashed the ball home to give his side a glimmer of hope. 

Matt Kardacz then completed the turnaround in the 95th minute, sending the tie to extra time. 

Mossley looked to have done enough to win it when Luke Barlow turned in a free kick from Bailey Marsden with just four minutes of extra time remaining, but a late penalty from the hosts levelled the scoring at 3-3, with Stephen Walker completing his hat trick and sending the game all the way to penalties. 

Both sides couldn’t be separated after three spot kicks, but after goalkeeper Fin Madigan kept out Whitby’s fourth and Mossley scored theirs, it was match point. 

Madigan then firmly cemented himself as the hero after saving Whitby’s fifth penalty and putting his side through. 

Though the tie could have gone either way, Mossley manager David Fish believes it was a deserved victory: 

“We took our pens superbly,” Fish told Mossley’s YouTube channel. 

“Penalty shoot-outs are a bit of a lottery sometimes, but I think over the two games we deserved the win- if you look at the balance of play and the chances created, I think we’ve definitely edged it.” 

Mossley’s reward for the victory is a home tie in the next round, they will take on Chorley at Seel Park on Saturday September 14.