Once again the guys from The Real FA Cup website have been out and about in the FA Cup and round up the best of the action

In touch with the footballing zeitgeist (weekly use of ‘zeitgeist’, tick), the 1st Qualifying Round of the FA Cup seems to have been about the goalies as well.

Some heroics, some calamaties and even a goalscoring goalie.

Oxhey Jets goalie Sam Styles became only the second keeper to score in the FA Cup from open play. Up for a late corner, Styles headed in a rebound  to score the game's last goal.  Oxhey had also scored the game's first but invbetween AFC Hornchurch scored 8 (eight)!
 
Redbridge 2-0 London Colney

This was an OK but schizophrenic game where the uneven surface played a major part in the erratic quality on show.

Colney never really got to grips with it or the absence of three influential players and it turned out to be a professional, routine win for Redbridge who scored two very good goals.

The first scored by Julian Ashby from a tightish angle after a neat one two with Julian Edwards. The second a Sonny Adams shot from the edge of the box after some nice interplay on Redbridge’s right.

However, the good thing about the game was the weather and the ground, if you live in North-East London or on the Essex-Hertfordshire borders and find yourself at a loose end on a Saturday, get yourself down to this little ground next to Barkingside Tube station.

If you want free footballs just stand on the platform while the game is on, eventually you’ll get one from a clearance.

While the covering is rudimentary, there is a lot of it so you won’t get wet, and the view is elevated, which is rare for a non-league ground.

West Auckland Town 3-1 Bradford Park Avenue

Mixed goalkeeping fortunes were the key as the 'First World Cup Winners' won through to the 2nd Qualifying Round.

After taking a bit of a beating for the first 20 minutes and going a goal down, West were saved further ignominy when their keeper Danny Bell saved Sanasay’s penalty.

This didn’t change the game, that happened 10 minutes later when Park Avenue’s keeper Kerr sliced a clearance to Moffat, whose composure and fleetness of foot left a simple tap in.

A minute later and Kerr took Stuart Banks’ legs from under him in the area and it was penalty number two. Moffat despatched it and West were unbelievably 2-1 to the good.

Cray Wanderers 1-0 South Park

A decent game at Bromley’s Hayes Lane ground for ITV's Road To Wembley saw irksome potential giant-killers South Park finally, and deservedly, get knocked out.
Cray, harshly, it seemed, were down to 10 men for about an hour but had the courage to keep two up front after the sending off and they had the best of the possession and chances after that.

South Park seemed happy with a draw from the opening 10 minutes and, even after the sending off were cautious in over committing.

Fortunately for the Cup and the game overall, the deserved winner finally came when former Dulwich Hamlet forward Laurent Hamici (last seen by us in September 2008 wearing gloves in September!) struck an injury time winner.

Until then, South Park’s goalie, who might have been “carrying some timber", his own words to a wise-cracking Cray fan on Sunday, had been responsible for keeping the scores level until the 90th minute.

He looked a bit jittery at times but pulled off several very good saves. Such is the magic of the Cup that, like the Havant & Waterlooville fans last year, the Cray supporters were audibly confident of making the 1st Round Proper in their 150th anniversary year.

Glossop North End 0-4 Mossley AFC

Out of respect for their pies and club official Jonathan Haggart, we’ll gloss over this one but, suffice to say, fans left before the end and there’s some relatively surprised Mossley fans out there too.

Sutton 1-2 Alton Town

With a week of commemorating and remembering Sutton’s giant killing of Coventry 21 years ago, now was perhaps a bad time for the Ryman Premier League leaders to be facing a side from the Wessex leagues who had conceded nearly four goals per game this season.

Sutton’s recent strike sensation Richard Jolly, with four goals in six games, Tweeted the team’s apologies after the match.

Basildon United replay against Harlow tonight (Monday), the rest of the replays are on the FA's website,  along with the draw for the 2nd Qualifying Round.

More match reports on www.therealfacup.co.uk and we'll be back the week after next having perused the pick of the ties - now including added Blue Square South & North teams.