The LONG READ: AFC TOTTON 1-0 MERTHYR TOWN, ISUZU FA TROPHY, 3rd RND QUAL

ISUZU FA TROPHY | THIRD ROUND QUALIFYING
Saturday 05 October 2024 | Snows Stadium, Salisbury Road, Totton | Att; 507

YEAH, BABY! AUSTIN POWERS 10-MAN TOTTON INTO FA TROPHY FIRST ROUND

AFC TOTTON 1
Charlie Austin 75mins

MERTHYR TOWN 0

CHARLIE AUSTIN’S FIFTH GOAL of the season saw AFC Totton through to the First Round (Proper) of the Isuzu FA Trophy at the Snows Stadium on Saturday (05 October 2024), despite The Stags playing more than half of their Third Round Qualifying tie against current Southern League Premier Division South leaders Merthyr Town with only 10 men.

An off-the-ball incident led to midfielder Charlie Kennedy being shown a red card 10 minutes before the interval. But having shipped goals in recent matches, Totton rediscovered their defensive mojo to keep The Martyrs at bay until Austin stepped off the bench to head Luke Bennett’s pinpoint cross into the net, and The Stags into Monday’s First Round draw.

With his team not having kicked a ball in anger for a fortnight, Manager Jimmy Ball rang the changes from the side that drew at Bracknell Town last time out. The versatile Luke Bennett was rewarded for impressive form in the Under-23s with his second first team start of the season, operating at right-back, while former Republic of Ireland youth international Tega Agberhiere made his AFC Totton debut on the left of defence. Winger Tom Blair returned from suspension to make his 10th start for the club, since joining in the summer. Sam Magri, Garrett Kelly and Charlie Austin were the players to make way, with Magri and Austin both named among the substitutes, together with returning loanee forward Ashley Clarke, whose two goals helped AFC Bournemouth to a 4-1 Hampshire Senior Cup win on the Snows Stadium turf in September.

AFC TOTTON: 13. Joshua GOULD; 2. Joe OASTLER; 5. Charlie KENNEDY; 8. Adam TOMASSO; 9. Scott RENDELL (Capt.); 10. Ethan TAYLOR; 12. Luke HALLETT; 16. Luke BENNETT; 18. Tony LEE; 19. Tom BLAIR; 20. Tega AGBERHIERE. Substitutes: 6. Sam MAGRI; 11. Charlie AUSTIN; 14. Josh OWERS; 15. Ashley CLARKE; 17. Declan ROSE. Substitutions: OWERS for RENDELL (30mins); CLARKE for BLAIR (46mins); AUSTIN for LEE (67mins); ROSE for TAYLOR (67mins); MAGRI for AGBERHIERE (81mins). Yellow Cards: HALLETT (Foul); BLAIR (Simulation); BENNETT (Foul); Red Card: KENNEDY (Foul).

MERTHYR TOWN: 1. Jaimie COGMAN; 2. Callum RYAN-PHILLIPS; 3. Thomas HANDLEY (Capt.); 5. Jay WILLIAMS; 7. Frazer THOMAS; 8. Alex JOHN; 9. Kane SIMPSON; 10. Ricardo REES; 11. Lewis TWAMLEY; 14. Jack EVANS; 17. Lee LUCAS. Substitutes: 4. Charlie CASWELL; 6. Cole JARVIS; 12. Kian DAVIES; 13. Aaron HARRIS; 15. Kobi PRESTON-WATKINS. Substitutions: JARVIS for THOMAS (60mins); PRESTON-WATKINS for JOHN (86mins) Yellow Cards: WILLIAMS (Foul).

Having made the 157-mile trip from their Penydarren Park home in South Wales, the visitors got the game underway wearing red shirts, green shorts and red socks, in a style not unlike the Portuguese national team. Totton wore their official cup kit of light blue shirts, navy blue shorts and light blue socks.

Merthyr came equipped with the division’s seven-goal leading scorer in the shape of their No.10 Ricardo Rees, and he was the first to threaten when leading an attacking raid down the visitors’ left wing, but Totton quickly got bodies around him to deny him the space from which to carve out a shooting opportunity.

Tony Lee carries a potent threat of his own, and when he dispossessed the dawdling Jay Williams near half-way, Merthyr were grateful for the alertness of their captain Thomas Handley who swooped in to nick the ball before the prolific former Poole poacher could pull the trigger.

Merthyr stepped up the pace as they attacked the Totton goal from the inside-left channel. Joe Oastler did well to cut-out a low, fizzed cross at full-stretch; Lee fulfilled his defensive duties by heading the resulting corner delivery firmly clear of The Stags’ penalty area.

Charlie Kennedy’s interception of a Merthyr pass along the half-way line promised much, but Ethan Taylor’s over-hit pass for Lee delivered little. Then, Luke Hallett became the first player to incur the referee’s wrath, earning a yellow card for a late challenge, before Totton debutant Tega Agberhiere had his first chance to shine by nipping ahead of Alex John to prevent the midfielder latching onto a dangerous through-ball towards Merthyr’s right flank.

Oastler turned away another attempted through-ball in the centre, but his clearance fell to Jack Evans on half-way, who chipped an angled pass over Luke Bennett to Rees, on the left corner of the Totton box. The striker controlled the ball and laid it back to tee-up Lewis Twamley for a low, angled shot that Josh Gould got down quickly to parry before snatching up the rebound - although, an offside flag would have denied the player following-up.

Jay Williams received the game’s second yellow card for a foul on Tega, as he dribbled along the half-way line. Then, Taylor received a pass from Kennedy on the Totton left and switched the play to the opposite flank, where three players in light blue combined to enable Tom Blair to arc a high cross to the far side. Taylor’s header guided the ball down to the edge of the area, where Scott Rendell played it square. Adam Tomasso wriggled past one defender but his shot struck a second, taking the weight off it, before Merthyr goalkeeper Jaimie Cogman gathered the loose ball.

Totton won a free-kick just off the left corner of the Merthyr penalty area for a trip on Lee, after Tega helped to work the striker into an advanced position. As Lee sized up the free-kick, the far side of the goal was beckoning invitingly, but his shot struck a defender in the wall and looped high into the air before another defender cleared.

Kennedy and Tega combined to release Taylor at inside-left, but the winger’s shot was smothered at source. Kennedy regained possession but Totton couldn’t exploit their territorial advantage. Then, on the half-hour mark, Rendell took a seat on the turf for an impromptu time-out, which was resolved by the talismanic centre-forward being withdrawn and replaced by former Yeovil Town midfielder Joshua Owers.

Gould scooped up a low cross from the Merthyr left and immediately redistributed the ball to Blair, on the opposite touchline under the SFS Main Stand. A quick one-two with Tomasso saw Blair progress into a prime crossing position on the left of the Merthyr area with Lee in the middle and Taylor arriving on the far side, but the winger’s cross was over-hit and a promising chance went begging.

Having withstood early Merthyr pressure to reassert themselves, Totton’s standing in the cup-tie was suddenly turned on its head in the 35th minute when a seemingly innocuous coming together close to the half-way line resulted in Charlie Kennedy being shown the red card. A few minutes beforehand, Kennedy had been appropriately apologetic about a late midfield challenge for which the referee had seen fit to issue only a word or two of admonishment. However, this second transgression - which a third-party from within the Totton camp describes as a soft kick-out in response to being shoved off the ball - earned the defensive midfielder his marching orders.

Tom Blair, just returned from suspension for accumulated yellow cards, then earned himself another for simulation, which the referee might have let go without comment had Tomasso not immediately necessitated a break in play by fouling a Merthyr player to prevent a swift counter-attack.

Despite reduced numbers, Totton continued to take the game to their opponents. Lee controlled the ball with his back to goal before bursting between two defenders to earn himself some space and freedom at inside-left. Cogman came out to narrow the angle and although Lee’s chip evaded the ‘keeper, it curled away from the far post.

Some sloppy play in possession by the home side resulted in Gould having to kick clear under pressure. The ball struck Evans in the chest about 40 yards out; he did the decent thing and went for the spectacular long-range conversion but his effort was always too high to trouble Totton’s giant goalie.

Totton fashioned their best chance of the game so far when Blair took a throw-in, high on the left wing, to instigate a quick one-two with Taylor; Blair’s first-time shot soared narrowly over the top-right corner of the Merthyr goal.

During three minutes of first-half stoppage, Merthyr thought they had a valid penalty shout when John appeared to be hauled to the ground by Tega inside Totton’s 18-yard area, but the referee’s assistant already had his flag raised for an earlier offside against John. Then, from the resulting free-kick, Gould punted for distance and Lee did well to control the ball on his chest, turning sharply to grapple past two defenders on his way to the left of the Merthyr six-yard box, before aiming a tired shot on-target that Cogman dealt with comfortably, ensuring the two sides went in level at the break.

HALF-TIME: AFC TOTTON 0-0 MERTHYR TOWN

As the teams came out for the second half, The Cherries loanee Ashley Clarke came on for Totton in place of Tom Blair. Ethan Taylor conducted the restart, with The Stags attacking towards what will soon be known as the Aldi end (if they ever complete its construction).

Diligent defensive work from Bennett prevented a Handley-Rees collaboration bearing fruit for Merthyr down their left wing, then Lee held the ball up well under pressure from two defenders to bring Clarke into the game, although the young forward was unable to fashion a cross from close to the left-wing touchline.

Undeterred, Handley got forward again to exchange passes with Rees and feed the run of ex-Cardiff City attacking midfielder Frazer Thomas towards the left-wing byline, his progress halted by a typically tigerish track and slide tackle manoeuvre from Tomasso, resulting in a corner. Merthyr took it short to play Twamley into inside-left; he passed square to Rees, whose first shot was blocked before he stubbed his second attempt past the right-hand upright.

Merthyr again exploited space on their left wing, this time Thomas getting forward to pull back for Handley. The Martyrs’ skipper produced a beautifully-measured cross that by-passed Hallett to present Ricardo Rees with a free header, but for once the hitman’s sights were off and he steered his effort wide of the left-hand post.

Given the immense difficulty of his task leading the line for the 10-men Stags, Lee was harshly penalised for tussling with his marker as he tried to wrestle free and race away into the attacking third. Tega demonstrated more of why Jimmy Ball was so keen to bring him to the club by sticking doggedly to the task of stopping Twamley’s progress on the Merthyr right with an excellent sliding tackle inside the Totton penalty area, before putting his side on the front foot with a precise forward pass.

Tega was called into action again, three minutes before the hour, when Twamley and Evans doubled-up on him to raid from the Merthyr right. Evans drove a low, angled shot from the edge of the box that Gould saved smartly, low to his right, the ‘keeper reacting sharply to gather the rebound before Rees could gobble himself a goal.

Bennett was booked for stepping on Thomas’s foot; it was probably accidental but it resulted in Thomas having to be substituted, with Cole Jarvis coming on in his stead. While that change was being administered, Jimmy Ball was shown the yellow card for protesting the referee’s decision.

The sun loitered directly opposite the SFS Main Stand, like a child refusing to go to bed before the end of the football, making for the kind of balmy late afternoon that makes autumn the best time of year in this New Forest. Also often to be seen hanging about in the sky, Luke Hallett went lateral to head clear Twamley’s fierce delivery from the Merthyr right into a well-populated Totton box. The Martyrs regained possession and switched the angle of their approach; Handley sent in another cross that was partially-cleared, before an overly-ambitious long-range effort sailed harmlessly beyond the frame of the goal, in the general direction of the Calmore roundabout.

Hitherto largely uninvolved, the former Frome Town striker Kane Simpson suddenly sparked into life and threatened to stamp his influence on the game with a swashbuckling run to the right-wing byline. But there is no meaner buckler of swashes on all of the Seven Seas than Joe Oastler; a nailed-on early-season contender for any one of The Stags’ several Player of the Year awards for 2024/25, the experienced former Torquay United defender tracked Simpson all the way and slid in to block the cross at source, more than earning the fortunate ricochet that resulted in play resuming with a Josh Gould goal-kick.

The hardworking Tony Lee was given a deserved rest on 67 minutes, with Charlie Austin coming on to lead the line for the remainder of the cup-tie. Declan Rose was also thrust into the fray, with Ethan Taylor making way for the former Poole defender.

A burst of pace saw Tega race away from his opponent and keep the ball in play at the left-wing corner flag. He looked up and pulled the ball back to 20 yards out, just off the corner of the Merthyr penalty area, where Ash Clarke took a touch and let fly with a low shot that Cogman parried; Austin followed up but Williams poked the ball away before he could get there.

Declan Rose got forward to swing in a cross from the Totton right, which Cole Jarvis did well to get across and block, diverting the ball out for a corner on The Stags’ right. Josh Owers swung in a high cross that was headed out by Jarvis at the edge of the six-yard box.

Visiting full-back Callum Ryan-Phillips won a tussle with Clarke, as the energetic young forward sought to attack from the left-wing byline — but the Cherries-loanee was only getting warmed-up. Receiving the ball on the left, he ran past two Merthyr defenders before driving diagonally infield and picking out Rose, pushing up on the Totton right to deliver a cross that struck a defender on the arm, prompting inevitable cries of “hand-ball!” The referee was unmoved and allowed play to continue, much to the vociferous complaints of Totton fans at that end of the ground and the management team in the Home dug-out. It didn’t take long, though, for the next natural break in play to occur, and with it came Jimmy Ball’s second caution from the senior match official, and the Totton manager’s banishment, condemned to watch the rest of the cup-tie from the front row of the SFS Main Stand. Another yellow card was waved in the general direction of the rest of the AFC Totton backroom staff, though who the guilty culprit was will forever be a secret well-guarded by the back wall of the dug-out that prevents those of us sitting in the Media seats from seeing into it.

Hallett’s intervention at the edge of the Totton box enabled The Stags to gallop forward on the counter-attack. Clarke led the charge, once again taking out two defenders on his left-wing progression into enemy territory, before switching the play to the right, where Rose and Bennett exchanged passes before a cross was deflected out for a throw-in, high on the right-wing. Rose stepped in front of Jarvis to receive Bennett’s throw on the near edge of the penalty area, before advancing to the byline and attempting to cross. Jarvis smothered it but Rose had the presence of mind to instantly return the ball to the unmarked Bennett, still loitering with intent on the touchline. With time to measure his cross, Luke Bennett produced the kind of service that made Charlie AUSTIN such a star, and the AFC Totton No.11 pounced from seven yards to guide his header into the bottom-right corner before Cogman could react.

Oastler slammed the door in the face of another Merthyr foray from their right. Then, despite their reduced numbers, Totton got bodies back in the box to crowd out The Martyrs’ next attack, with Rose digging in to do the work of two players, ensuring the Southern League’s top scorers remained unable to carve out a route to goal.

When Jarvis spread the play to Twamley on the right and the winger was able to get his shot away from the corner of the Totton box, with defenders in retreat, the great big gloves of Gould made a solid catch.

After going down to receive treatment, Tega Agberhiere was given a warm reception by the AFC Totton faithful as his Stags debut came to an end, and the considerably more experienced Sam Magri stepped off the bench to help Totton see out the win, with nine minutes to go. Austin and Rose frustrated Merthyr for a few valuable seconds by keeping the ball close to the right-wing corner flag. When the visitors eventually managed to get the ball up the other end, and a slip by Clarke looked to provide a potential opening, Oastler was there again to deny access.

There was more anger from the Totton bench when Owers went down injured and play was allowed to continue, even after Rose had punted clear down the line to initiate a new phase of play. Merthyr were in less than charitable mood and chose to begin another attack, which ended with a damp squib of a long-shot sending supporters scurrying for cover behind the Totton end.

Merthyr pushed for an equaliser, sending in cross-after-cross. Jarvis got his head to one of them, but couldn’t keep it down. Then, Oastler and Hallett both did as they usually do to protect Totton’s lead with clearing headers of their own, before the next aerial bombardment was halted by the award of a Totton free-kick for a push by Rees.

Four minutes of added time were appended to the regulation 90, with the prospect of a penalty shoot-out still lingering should Merthyr Town find a late equaliser. They huffed and puffed, and continued to pump the ball into the Totton box at every opportunity, but Gould dealt with anything that made it as far as the Totton six-yard box, while his defence patrolled the space in front.

Owers made a brave block on the edge of the area. Then, it was Tomasso’s turn to repel an in-swinging cross from late Merthyr substitute Kobi Preston-Watkins. The Stags stood firm to keep their first clean sheet since the 4-0 home win over Wimborne Town on 10 September, thereby confirming their place in the draw for the First Round (Proper) of the Isuzu FA Trophy 2024/25, which will take place at lunchtime on Monday.

Watch JIMMY BALL’S Post-Match Interview

Watch SCOTT RENDELL’S Post-Match Interview

Southern League Premier Division South LEAGUE TABLE

AFC Totton FIXTURES

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By Ben Rochey-Adams