Bucks eliminated from County Cup

By Brendan Doyle

After a 1-1 draw after ninety minutes The Bucks were defeated 5-4 on penalties to MSB Woolton resulting in an exit of the Liverpool Senior Cup.

Bootle almost took the lead very early on in the game as Jay Roberts managed to find Will Russ unmarked in the MSB Woolton area but as the ball fell to Russ in front of a pretty much open goal, Russ scuffed his effort over the bar. Minutes later a similar move happened again as Jay Roberts managed to keep the ball from going out of play for an MSB Woolton goal kick with a first time pass to Will Russ who was once again unmarked in the area but a bit more further out from the goal and Will Russ hit the ball with a first time effort but the shot flew way over the bar.

Eventually Bootle did take the lead after Joe Woolley brought down a heightened ball with a magnificent first touch and then played a through ball into Will Russ which Russ then carried past MSB Woolton keeper James Pyper and buried his effort to give The Bucks a 1-0 lead at Jericho Lane. Just before the break, Will Russ was through one on one and looked very favourably to put Bootle in a comfortable 2-0 lead going into half time but James Pyper made an excellent to deny the visiting Bucks doubling their lead.

Just a couple of minutes after the second half begun, MSB Woolton took the lead after a brilliant passage of play ended up at the feet of Joe Harvey who slotted the ball past Tony Thompson to level the scoring, a very well worked goal for MSB Woolton in all fairness. Things seemed to go from bad to worse for Bootle as the referee awarded a penalty to MSB Woolton after the ball struck an arm of a Bootle player in the area, Danny Ventre stepped up to take the penalty but the ball struck the post and the score stayed level.

Jack McAllister almost gave MSB Woolton the lead after a curling effort from outside the box looked very dangerous but it went just inches over the bar, a ball floated in the Bootle area from out wide which fell to Anthony Miley who was presumably attempting to head the ball into Tony Thompson’s hands but the ball very nearly ended up in the back of his own net after falling just inches wide of the post.

MSB substitute Tega Okeregha injected some pace into the game for his side from the minute he entered the field and nearly put his side in front after he beat Michael Simpson to the ball on the right hand side and got a shot away which forced Tony Thompson to make a quick down low save to his near post. With only a minute to go a corner from Bootle fell to the head of Sam Hughes but the effort from Hughes was just wide of the goal mouth.

After ninety minutes of play and the match ending 1-1, the tie went straight to penalties which seen Bootle exit the Liverpool Senior Cup in the preliminary round of the competition after James Pyper made his second save of the shootout to deny Joe Woolley keeping Bootle’s hopes alive.