AFA Intermediate Cup 2nd Round - 4th November 2006

Carshalton defeated Zurich Eagle Star 1s at Beddington Park on Saturday, booking their place in the next round of the AFA Intermediate Cup with a stunning second half display that saw them score six goals in the final twenty minutes after the visitors had been reduced to ten-men.

In an evenly contested opening half hour that produced very few chances, Cars' Neal Collard came closest to opening the scoring when after 10 minutes he headed over at the far post from a Michael Tilley free-kick.  However, the deadlock was finally broken by the hosts on 32 minutes - winger Shane Bowes racing clear and at the second attempt, slotting past the Zurich keeper to give his side the lead.  A minute later, Bowes turned provider, crossing for Paul Pearce who from 8-yards out screwed a half-volley wide of the far post.   The remainder of the first half saw opportunities at a premium with the only action of any note; an effort from the visitor’s centre-forward, which he fired wide, and then a minute before the break, a great strike from Cars’ Vincent that hit the foot of the near post.

After the interval, the visitors found themselves coming under ever-increasing pressure from the home side.  And, despite defending in numbers they couldn't prevent Cars from adding to their tally after an exchange of passes between Bowes and Pearce ended with the latter drilling the ball into an empty net in the 64th minute.  Just four minutes later, Zurich were given an unexpected lifeline when Cars keeper Ross Sinclair was harshly adjudged to have brought down an opponent in the box. From the resulting spot kick, which incidentally Sinclair was very close to saving down at his right post, the Zurich centre-forward put his side back in a contest they had seemingly appeared to be out of.  Then, as the game restarted, Zurich were made to pay for some earlier rather unsavory challenges when one of the defenders received his marching orders having collected a second yellow card for a foul on Vincent.  When the game got underway again, Tilley sent the resulting free-kick toward the near post where the visitors failed to clear their lines, allowing Steve Nicholls to pop-up unmarked and hook the ball beyond the Zurich keeper, opening his Cars account and restoring the two-goal advantage.  As the visitor’s ten-men understandably started to tire, so the Cars forwards began to look more menacing, and in the 77th minute the combination of Pearce and Vincent fashioned Cars' fourth goal - Vincent sending a ball over to the far post where his strike partner Pearce stabbed home from the edge of the six-yard box.  Moments later, Pearce was put clean away and through one-on-one with the keeper, and despite initially held-up by the Zurich custodian, the Cars striker nevertheless completed his hat-trick, scoring his team’s 50th goal of the season with a low curling shot from just outside the 18-yard box, which crept inside the far post.  On 87 minutes, Pearce, with perhaps his best goal of the afternoon became the second member of the Cars squad this season to bag four goals in a game, beating the keeper with a delightful chip after darting past both Zurich’s central defenders.  With the 90 minutes almost up, Mr. Weaver, the match official awarded the second penalty of the tie after the Zurich right-back had upended Pearce in the six-yard box.  Cars' keeper Sinclair stepped forward to take the kick, which he expertly dispatched hard and low to the keeper's right.  The hosts though hadn't quite finished, and in time added on they completed the rout - Pearce collecting the ball in the middle of the park and swiveling to send Vincent in on goal where he finished with much aplomb, calmly sliding the ball under the advancing keeper. 

Carshalton are in cup action again next week when they travel to Reigate for an eagerly awaited AFA Surrey/Kent Intermediate Cup tie against Reigatians of the Amateur Football Combination league.