For the Tesco knockout cup, Mohicans travelled to Preston and had a tough encounter against a side from a lower division.
Some great defending by Greg Whyley and Louie Kelly stopped early attacks and then Jamie Spence made a strong run into the Preston box, he was brought down and Callum Ward stepped up to take the penalty. He struck it well but the keeper pulled off a fantastic save. A minute later Dan Naldrett made a goal saving challenge when a forward was clean through. Preston then scored on 12 minutes against the run of play. Sam Tuft was in good form on the left wing and following a trade mark ‘spin and turn’ he then collected a return pass near the edge of the box. A clever ball to Oliver Morrison allowed him time to pick his spot and equalise.
On 21 minutes Harry Staniforth sent in a near post corner which Steven Heath met on the volley and got enough power on the shot for the keeper to fumble it over the line while under pressure from Jamie Spence.Preston were putting in some hard challenges and after a corner was only cleared to the edge of the box, they equalised. However, two minutes later Mohicans were back in front when a long clearance from Harry Staniforth fell to Oliver Morrison who tore into the box and finished very well.
The second half turned into a very niggly and vocal affair with Preston’s supporters and manager trying to influence the referee. Some nasty challenges came against the lads, but they battled manly and stuck to their task very well with Dan Naldrett breaking up many attacks. Callum Ward controlled the midfield and with Jamie Spence keeping possession when surrounded by up to five defenders on occasions, Mohicans looked the side more likely to score.
After 27 minutes of the second half, Callum Ward passed to Jamie Spence who held off a challenge before scoring with a good shot. Six minutes later the tie was wrapped up when Steven Heath found Sam Tuft who raced through to score. All the lads played with great team spirit in difficult circumstances, with man of the match going to Harry Staniforth for, not only his defending, but also the support he gave Marc O’Hare when Mohicans were on the attack.
