Brave Effort From Jets Ends in Unexpected Extra-Time
Oxhey Jets 2 Tring Athletic 5 (after extra time)
St Marys Cup Semi-Final
29th April 2023
Jets biggest gate of the season of 148 saw them put up a brave fight against local friends and rivals Tring Athletic in the St Mary’s Cup semi-final but finally fell in extra time of a match that, by the competition rules, should not have had extra time but gone to penalties on 90 mins, summing up how things have gone for Jets this season.
Tommy Kennard drives forward in front of our season highest crowd.
It was a good game in the sunshine, Tring in honesty having the upper hand over a tired-looking Jets, but Jets in full applause to them dug deep and would not surrender.
Tring opened the scoring 15mins converting in off the post.
Great finish from Jack James and it’s 1-1
Jets responded with a great move finding young Jack James, overlapping superbly to score his first goal for the Jets ( 23 mins).
Brave save from Lewis Lavin, but he suffered an arm unjury.
On the brink of half time, Lewis Lavin kept Jets square with a superb tip over the bar for 1-1 at the break but is severely hampered picking up a bad cut and injury after bravely saving at feet and getting stood on in the scramble that followed.
Painful patch-up needed for Lewis.
The half-time was a hard patch-up for the young keeper who was in much pain and ten minutes into the second half was punished as the injury restricted him and was unable to hold the ball and the loose ball ran home.
Chippy levels it! 2-2
With seven minutes to go that man Chippy pops up again, after scoring his first-ever goal in the last match he headed no2 today to level things at the Boundary heading home a corner 2-2 Harry Brady.
The referee, who didn’t know the competition rules, took the match into extra time, and then, inexplicably, played an advantage from a foul on Jets that was to Tring’s benefit and they went on to score the decisive third goal.
Jets just died on their feet then as the extra time was too long for a young team that has played far too many games in the last three weeks, and Tring ran out 2-5 winners in the second period.
It was hard on Jets confidence and hearts and heads already suffering from the kick of relegation, a fact sarcastically pointed out by the referee to our players during the match which our supporters thought was disgusting.
Jets man of the match went to Jack James, having a fantastic game and showed again that age does not matter, and Dave Barnes and Tom Inch are fantastic supporters of the young players.
We wish Tring well for the final. They are a smashing club and their team is a tribute to playing and rebuilding a club with youngsters after they too, in their recent history, had to start from scratch like we have this season.
From the Jets nothing but praise for the young guns who have given their best, I hope the FA and Combined Counties at least learn from our pains this season as they have innocently, with league moves and fixtures, conspired to help make it happen.
