Goals from Danny Parish and Jerome Slew saw Isthmian North Maldon & Tiptree stun League Two Leyton Orient at Brisbane Road to cause a huge upset in the Emirates FA Cup and reach the Second Round Proper of the competition.
The visitors, who began their run back in August with a 2-1 win at Essex Senior League side Saffron Walden Town in the Preliminary Round, were playing their sixth game in this competition this season after battling through four qualifying rounds after that Preliminary Round success at Catons Lane, so this was an achievement in itself to reach this stage of the competition.
For the O’s, this was their first game in this seasons competition and they were fully expected to beat a side four leagues below them and also part-timers too., but this is the FA Cup and shocks have happened before as we know, although nobody really gave the minnows here a chance.
Orient began the game on the front foot but Maldon soon got into their stride and having won all but one of their twenty games in all competitions so far this season the confidence was high and this soon started to show in this game too as the first big chance fell the way of the visitors when Parish saw an effort brilliantly tipped over by Sam Sargeant.
Orient then had a pretty good chance themselves soon after when they attacked down the left and saw Widdowson’s cut back find Josh Wright whose first-time effort went straight at keeper Ben McNamara. Maldon though were growing in confidence in this tie now and saw another effort fly just off target. It was another warning to the hosts, a warning they did not heed.
That is because with two minutes of the half remaining Charlee Hughes advanced forward and fed Parish who cuts inside and fired beyond Sargeant and cued mass celebrations amongst the away fans gathered behind the goal at the opposite, meaning the scorer ran up the other end, pursued by his teammates, before knee sliding in front of them. It was a terrific moment and it meant the visitors had a shock half time lead.
The O’s were booed off at half time by their own fans and had much work to do in this one, nobody saw this coming including the hosts, but they knew they were in a cup tie now that was for sure.
Half Time Leyton Orient 0 Maldon & Tiptree 1
So how would the O’s respond to this shock deficit, they were a team who under new boss Carl Fletcher had failed to win any of his four games thus far, so confidence amongst the players and fans wasn’t that high, but surely their superior fitness would win through eventually?
Well not really as twenty minutes into the second period came a moment of magic from Slew, as after the hosts were caught on a counter attack, the Maldon attacker ran from the edge of his own penalty area, bumped off a challenge from a defender before curling a wonderful finish Sargeant and cued more mass celebrations at that end of the field. It was 2-0 to the visitors, unbelievable!!!
It was now desperate for the hosts, and their fans around me were going mad, they were two goals down at home to a part time non-league club and they did not like that one little bit. They had to respond quickly, and they did, as almost immediately from the restart Matt Harrold’s knock down found James Dayton who managed to lob keeper McNamara and see the ball just about find the net despite two defenders on the line trying to clear the ball off it.
It was a blow to the visitors who didn’t need to concede so quickly after doubling their lead, and now their resolve would surely be tested to the max. Wright then saw an effort from point plank range hits keeper McNamara who knew little about it and saw the ball scrambled away as Orient looked for a leveller.
Maldon though did still threaten on the counter, and Parish looked to have be fouled inside the box for a penalty, but he actually fell down due to cramp, but the referee deemed it simulation and gave a free kick to Orient and Parish duly received a second yellow, meaning he was dismissed with six minutes of the ninety to go, much to his and the visitors disgust.
The Jammers really had to dig deep now in the remaining time left, and saw McNamara make crucial stops to deny Harrod and James Alabi, who had been brought on late on to try and force a leveller, and one of those chances somehow stayed out when after the ball had gone through McNamara’s legs, it looked odds on to have gone in but for a defender to get round to hack it off the line and keep their lead intact. Phew, it was backs to the wall time for the Isthmian North side.
Six minutes of stoppage time was shown and the O’s had one last crack at trying to force a replay, but Maldon & Tiptree were not going to give this one away and clung on superbly to record a quite magnificent victory and stun their Football League opponents here. The full-time whistle brought jubilant scenes from the visitors who saw quite a few of their 600 plus following join them to celebrate on the pitch afterwards, it really was a special FA Cup moment.
The Jammers players were absolute heroes today, putting their bodies on the line time and time again, and yes they rode their luck a bit at times, but they earned that luck and are rewarded with a place in the Second Round Proper for the first time in their history.
For the O’s it was a poor day for them, and some of their fans were calling for the head of boss Fletcher after only five games, none of which they have won, and they have failed to get past this stage of the competition since 2015-16, so it’s another disappointing day in the competition for them.
The last word must go to the victorious Maldon & Tiptree though, a simply stunning result here and one I am glad to say ‘I was there to see it’ too. Slew’s goal was a special moment, a moment this wonderful competition can throw up, this is why we love the FA Cup right? Brilliant stuff…..
Full Time Leyton Orient 1 Maldon & Tiptree 2
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