The home side kicked off the match, but it was Newbury who launched the first attack, when a ball over the top found Amy McNab. Her cross into the area from the right was deflected for an early Newbury corner. Newbury had slightly more of the play in the opening period, but they were un-done on 13 minutes when Ascot winger, Sarah Davern, was allowed to cut in from the right. Her cross found her team mate inside the Newbury area and with the shot not closed down, the ball sailed low inside the far post to give Ascot United an early one nil lead.

From there, Ascot then had the better chances of the first half, but fortunately for Newbury, they weren’t clinical enough with their finishing. Newbury suffered another blow in the 40th minute when their captain, Caz Harkness had to be replaced through injury. This gave an opportunity to new signing, Jana Penazova, to make her competitive debut. Newbury were therefore quite relieved to hear the half time whistle and still only to be trailing to a single goal. One nil at half time.

When the second half began, it was now a very finely balanced cup tie, which could go either way. Newbury’s passing was now clicking better than it had in the first half, with Penazova adding more energy into the midfield areas. McNab was working tirelessly up front for Newbury, but she was being restricted to long range efforts. She nearly turned provider however in the 67th minute, when she played a pass into Ellie Reed. Her shot was well saved, but only parried to give Newbury a corner. Reed took the set piece from the right and the cross was a good one. The Ascot keeper was in no man’s land and it was down to her defenders to try to clear. They only managed to send the ball to the edge of the area, where an un-marked Shelley Forster was lurking for Newbury. She slammed a low, hard drive back through a crowded area and into the net to give Newbury a deserved equaliser.

Buoyed by the goal, Newbury now felt the momentum was back in their favour and they went looking for a winner. They had a good chance when Bec Walker was adjudged to be fouled just outside the area. Reed stepped up to take the free kick, but the Ascot goalkeeper was able to save well to her left. It was not until the 80th minute that Newbury made their second substitution, again introducing another debutant, Becky Anderson, in place of Bec Walker. Anderson looked lively straight away and her fresh legs gave some added drive to Newbury’s attack. When McNab played a forward ball that saw Anderson one on one with the last defender, every Newbury supporter felt she would brush the challenge aside for a shooting attempt, but the Referee spotted an infringement and before Anderson’s shot found the net, he had blown his whistle to bring the play back and award a relieved Ascot a free kick.

In a very late flurry, Ascot had two good chances to nick a winner, and although there was an element of late panic in the Newbury backline, they and goalkeeper, Nicky Isted, held firm. So when the Referee signalled full time, the score-line was still tied at 1-1 and both sides knew that a further 30 minute period of extra time would be required to try to separate them.

With the rain continuing to fall and the pitch becoming slippery, it was possible that a mistake might lead to a winning goal for either side during the Extra Time period. Ascot nearly found a breakthrough just 7 minutes into Extra Time, when a long distance shot skidded against the post, but then cannoned away to safety. McNab was soon replaced for Newbury, with the fresher legs of Gemma Burnett. But there was to be no heroics for either side, as both players were tiring. The two teams could not be separated and after just over 120 minutes of football, the match was still tied at one all. So it would be a penalty shoot out to decide which team would progress to the next round.

Ascot won the coin toss and elected to take the first spot kick, with the kicks taken in the traditional alternative order, one team after the other.

The first three penalties were all converted, but then Newbury were the first to miss when Ayala Truelove’s shot hit the base of the left post. Leanne Saunders previously scoring her penalty for Newbury. Each team’s third penalties were scored, with Forster netting for Newbury. It was certainly proving to be a very tense shoot out, with Ascot’s next kick sent over the bar and Newbury’s Lauren Hanson seeing her attempt saved. With four penalties taken for both sides, Newbury were trailing 3-2.

Ascot’s fifth penalty brought out a fine save from Newbury’s keeper, Nicky Isted, although it looked for one moment as if the ball would trickle over the goal-line, but Isted cleared. Next, up stepped Gemma Burnett for Newbury, needing to score to keep her team in the contest and take it to sudden death. She duly dispatched her spot kick in a confident manner. 3-3 now and with both teams onto their sixth penalty takers.

With Ascot scoring, the pressure was back on Newbury and the responsibility fell to stand-in skipper, Ellie Reed. Unfortunately her effort went over the bar and with it Newbury’s hopes of an extended FA Cup run this season also ended. 4-3 to Ascot the final score on penalties. It had been an enthralling cup-tie, but having exited a cup competition in the same dramatic fashion last season, it was a cruel double for Newbury that they do not wish to repeat for some time to come.

Match report by Sue Hewett