STOCKPORT COUNTY 3, BRACKLEY TOWN 1
Stockport County continued their Emirates FA Cup campaign with a triumph at Edgeley Park over Brackley Town that saw their name go into the hat for the third round on Monday night.
The contest with the National League North visitors – against whom County, whilst at that level, had engaged on 16 occasions in all competitions (but only triumphed once at EP, a decade ago) – saw early strikes from Will Collar and Kyle Wootton put the Hatters seemingly well in control of proceedings at the break.
But life became rather more uncomfortable for them during the greater part of a second half in which Callum Connolly’s own goal breathed new life and spirit into the visiting Saints before substitute Tanto Olaofe scored a third four minutes from time to make sure of County’s advance to the stage of the competition where Premier League and Championship clubs enter the fray.
The Hatters took to the field on a mild, cloudy afternoon, showing four changes from their League One line-up that had started at Burton a week earlier. Corey Addai, Odin Bailey, Callum Camps and Ibby Touray made up the recalled quartet – replacing Ben Hinchliffe and Ryan Rydel (who were among the nine substitutes permitted for the Cup), as well as Louie Barry and skipper Lewis Bate, both of whom missed out due to illness, with Fraser Horsfall taking the captain’s armband in Bate’s absence.
County created the contest’s first chance with just under four minutes played, when Touray’s cross from the left was met by Wootton whose header cleared the Railway End crossbar. And four minutes later, another Touray delivery on the same flank found the big striker – assisted by a Collar flick – but Wootton was denied, first courtesy of a block from visiting captain Gaz Dean, and subsequently by George Carline’s deflection past the near upright.
The visitors from West Northamptonshire, who had overcome four sets of opponents – including Braintree and Hartlepool from the National League a tier above – to reach the second round-proper, responded with shots from Connor Hall and Matt Lowe, whose respective efforts fizzed beyond the right post and deflected behind off Addai.
But cometh the quarter-hour, cometh the man, with Collar latching on to Wootton’s lay-off and firing home his third goal of the season in all competitions, after a Bailey shot from the left of goal had been parried by Brackley keeper Jonny Maxted.
Three minutes later, County’s advantage was doubled when Collar and Wootton combined to great effect again – on this occasion, with the former crossing from the right, and the latter ghosting into the six-yard box before diving to head in.
Collar went close to notching his second, and a third for County, as his first-time shot – following Ethan Pye’s low delivery from the left – flew just shy of the near post. And both Camps and Ollie Norwood fired attempts over – before Wootton, with 11 minutes of the half to go, and for a second time in the tie, saw a goal-bound shot deflected behind by Carline.
The Hatters, upon the resumption, introduced Jayden Fevrier and Olaofe in place of the two first-half goal-scorers. And Olaofe, seven minutes later, headed beyond the far post after connecting with a corner by Bailey from the right.
Ten minutes into the new half, however, Brackley’s arrears were reduced in astonishingly bizarre fashion when Connolly’s attempted back-pass from just inside the County half gathered the pace of a punt that left the backtracking Addai with no chance of keeping out.
Boosted by this huge slice of fortune, the Saints came veritably alive, with Tommy O’Sullivan – who had been announced as a starter late on, following a warm-up injury to Morgan Roberts – seeing a shot deflected past the left post, and, from the resulting corner, Shane Byrne firing into the arms of Addai.
At the other end, Touray headed past the far post after connecting with Fevrier’s cross from the right, and Maxted did well to keep out a well-struck, point-blank Bailey effort – before Touray raced back to dispossess Hall, who had been played through on the County goal.
Brackley had the ball in the net a second time with 13 minutes left, only to have the goal ruled out for offside – but were continuing to press for an equaliser before Olaofe, to no little relief for more than 5,000 of those in attendance, made the game safe as he slid in to convert, at close range, fellow substitute Tayo Adaramola’s low cross from the left.
Goals: Collar (15), Wootton (18), Olaofe (86) for Stockport. Connolly (55 og) for Brackley.
Stockport (3-4-3): Addai; Connolly, Horsfall, Pye; Southam-Hales (Adaramola 71), Norwood (Fiorini 71), Camps, Touray; Collar (Fevrier 46), Wootton (Olaofe 46), Bailey. Subs (unused): Hinchliffe, Mingi, Mellon, Rydel, Gardner.
Attendance: 5,637 (395 visitors).
Report: Gareth Evans.