Our dreams of progressing to the FA Cup First Round proper were ultimately crushed when Forest Green Rovers handed us a 2-0 defeat last Saturday at the New Lawn.
The Green initially took the lead five minutes before halftime when Charlie McCann picked out Liam Sercombe inside the box, before substitute Christian Doidge sealed our defeat towards the end of the game.
It certainly wasn’t a performance to be ashamed of, a view Mark Molesley echoed after the full-time whistle, although our in-game moments were ultimately not enough to stop the Gloucestershire outfit from progressing to the next round.
We arrived in a town that still holds the record for the smallest to host an English Football League Team; this was reflected in the turnout, the New Lawn holding no more than a few hundred on Saturday.
Still though, the lack of numbers did little to thwart any intensity typical of a cup tie, as it took just two minutes for our goal to be seriously threatened.
Tom Knowles received the ball down the left-hand side, before cutting in and rattling the crossbar with his thunderous strike.
But despite our early scares, the game would settle, with chances few and far between for both sides for much of the opening 20 minutes.
Though the hosts would continuously combine some neat one-touch play, our defensive shape dealt with their dominance in possession well, often intercepting the ball.
Our solidity at the back was most visible just before the 20-minute mark, when Forest Green came within inches of taking the lead.
Adam May backheeled the ball between-the-lines into Knowles, who whipped in a dangerous cross from the left by-line.
The ball flew into Luke Cardwell’s path but, after a scramble near the goal, then appeared to be cleared off the line by Ben Greenwood.
By the skin of our teeth, we were still level.
After this point we grew into the game, and could have taken the lead via a delivery of our own right on the half-hour mark.
Keelan O’Connell fired in a dangerous delivery from his left-hand side to Christy Ward, whose head was only just able to reach the ball.
Keels remained a crossing threat on the wing, next finding the head of Charlie Rowan seven minutes on, with our defender unable to generate enough power towards goal.
Our best chance of the half came just a minute later, through a piece of Christy magic.
The newcomer twisted and turned inside the box, managing to find space for a shot.
Had his strike been fired a little further left, it would have been a goal worthy of giving any side the lead.
But, in truly cruel fashion, the hosts responded soon after and took the lead.
McCann wrongfooted our defence and found himself space within the box, picking out Sercombe who had a very easy job of slotting home from just a few yards out.
With Forest Green 1-0 with five minutes left of the first half, momentum swung back their way.
They came close to doubling their lead just two minutes later, and may have done so had it not been for Will Buse’s heroics.
Our shot-stopper was called into action when Kyle McAllister carried the ball into our box.
Will, however, stood strong and prevented McAllister’s close-range strike from putting us another goal behind.
With a minimum of just one minute of extra time added, the scoreline looked unlikely to change before the break.
However, when Ezio Touray ran past multiple Forest Green defenders and into the box, a twist to this tie seemed possible.
But when New-Zealander Jamie Searle rushed out of goal and denied our frontman, the goalkeeper’s actions ensured we headed down the tunnel trailing.
The first chance of the second half came our way when Tom Bearwish struck a low shot on the edge of the box, the strike unfortunately met with a Searle save.
However, much like the preceding half, chances were limited after the first major opportunity, our defence remaining resolute.
This was perhaps best shown, when a series of blocks from Charlie and Calvin Brooks helped keep the hosts at bay.
Our best chance of the second half came Ezio’s way when substitute Brooklyn Genesini picked out our striker with a cross from the right-hand side.
Ezio, however, headed just wide as we remained a goal down with 10 minutes to go.
One minute beforehand, the hosts nearly had a sight at goal of their own, when Cardwell just missed a low cross from the right by-line.
But now, we were entering a period where we began to take control of the ball.
Our hard work nearly paid off just as stoppage time began, when substitute Leo Hambin looked to pick out Christy with a cross.
Christy, though, just missed the ball and the hosts had possession once again.
Then, in just as cruel fashion as the first half, they broke on the counter before McCann found Doidge with a through-ball.
The Welsh sub then coolly slotted past our keeper to make it 2-0 to Forest Green, securing his side’s ticket to the FA Cup First Round proper.
Despite the result, Mark told us he saw plenty of positives, notably our “work rate” and defensive duties.
