Spalding United lose to Mickleover in the FA Cup

Spalding United’s hopes of winning a second successive FA Cup were dashed by Mickleover on Saturday.

The unbeaten Southern Premier League Central Division leaders won 3-1 over the Tulips in their second qualifying round match.

Jordan Graham’s second-half penalty brought the Tulips back level after Andy Dales’ first-half opener.

However, the tie only lasted four minutes before the Dales put Derbyshire back in front with a Stuart Bevon goal as the home team sealed a 3-1 win.

It was the first time this season that the Tulips had been beaten for 90 minutes and manager Elliott Sandy felt his side would learn from the experience.

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“We came up with a very good team that won their first eight league games in the division above, but in large parts, I felt we were competing with them,” he said.

“Their movement, especially the attack, is very good and they scored a great goal to take the lead but we stayed in the game and had some chances.

“We came out in the second half and got the penalty to make it 1-1 and it was a matter of trying to keep our composure.

“But we made a huge mistake with their second goal, and you can’t give chances like that to a team like Mickleover.

“We didn’t react inside the box when we scored the third goal, and against these better teams you have to be more sharp in your mind. It’s definitely something we will learn from.”

“It’s those small margins because they got a header that hit the crossbar and we didn’t react quickly enough and they scored.”

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Spalding – who knocked out Stratford Town of the same division in the last round – fell behind in the 13th minute as Dales fired a powerful shot from distance that flew into the top corner.

The Tulips looked to be responding and James Clifton was unable to convert Glenn Walker’s cross before goalkeeper Tony Breeden made a good save to frustrate the hosts.

The Tulips’ goalkeeper then cleared another long-range effort to safety before Clifton fired wide from goal after a dangerous cross.

Graham was denied by a smart stop from goalkeeper James Pollard who then cleared Nathan Steinfeld’s header from the resulting corner.

Walker then curled the ball into another cracking post which was tipped against his own crossbar by a Mickleover defender as the home side held the lead at the break.

However, Spalding needed just six minutes of the second half to equalize when Graham equalized from the penalty spot.

But they remained level for just four minutes as mix-ups in defense allowed Dales to score his second and Mickleover’s goal.

Spalding once again looked to find their way back into the game and Lewis Hilliard saw a powerful shot blocked well while the visitors did well to deal with an attractive cross from Wilson Carvalho.

The game was then put out of reach for the Tulips with 18 minutes remaining when a free-kick hit the crossbar and Stuart Beavon converted the rebound to secure Mickleover’s place in the next round.

Tulips: Breeden, Draper, Warburton, Parker (Curtis 90), Steinfeld, Cartwright, Hilliard (Taylor 78), Clifton, Graham, Carvalho, Walker (Morley 90). Subs not used: Sweeney, Sandy. Attendance: 324.

    (Tags for translation) Football