Burton Albion 2 Oldham Athletic 2

Last updated : 28 November 2002 By The Chairman

Athletic went to Burton hoping that they would not be on the end of a giant killing act. It’s a reversal of roles for the blues who have been killers rather than killed this season after their exploits in the Worthington Cup. The game was a sell out with 3,600 fans cramped into the Eton Park ground with the majority of them rooting for the team which plays two divisions lower than the opposition on the football pyramid. However the game was started with both sides cautious and not wanting to make an early mistake which could turn out to be costly.

In the fifth minute Talbot whipped in a cross cum centre which Poggi had to backtrack and push the ball over the bar for a corner. Athletic’s first real chance came when Clyde Winjhard was put through in the 13th. minute but he snatched at the chance and blasted the ball wide and high into the stands. Burton were next to counter in the 18th. minute when Talbot sailed past his fullback as if he wasn’t there to centre, but fortunately for the Latics the resulting header was headed out of the box. Glasser was following up and rifled a shot towards goal which Poggi did well to collect at the second attempt.

Josh Low was unfortunate to break down with a hamstring injury in the 20th. minute and was replaced by Carlo Corazzin. In the 23rd. minute Wayne Andrews was put away down the right and hit a goalworthy effort which was deflected away for a corner. From the resulting corner the ball was played out but then hit directly back in towards the goal. It was Fitz Hall who reacted first to send a chip shot against the crossbar which rebounded out and caused all sorts of problems but it was eventually cleared. Oldham were now flooding the box with players but couldn’t find the elusive breakthrough.

On 29 the Latics had two chances to open their account when the ball came over from the left but the final shot by Andrews was poor as he snatched at it instead of taking the time to control the ball and pick his spot. Another opening was made in the 35th. minute as David Eyres hit the ball from just within the penalty box but John Eyre deflected the shot wide. The ball was bobbing about in the Albion area as Athletic pushed time and time again but they just couldn’t find the final shot to make their dominence pay. In the 40th. minute Eyres took another shot hard in from the left but saw his effort sail wide.

Albion had an appeal for a penalty turned down just before the half time whistle when Moore broke through and he clattered into Poggi but the referee, who was unsighted, was having none of it. In reality the decision was correct as the Oldham goalie, helping to preserve an excellent 11 clean sheets in 19 games, was making a genuine attempt to get the ball. So it was all square when the teams left the field for the half time break.

Athletic started the second half playing with a strong wind at their backs. Dowie opted to change the formation leaving just Hall and Clint Hill at the heart of defence instead of the three centre backs which were deployed in the first half. The move worked well as the Latics took the lead in the 49th. minute. An Eyres shot from the right side of the box was deflected off an Albion defender and it fell to Winjhard. The record scorer slid in and hit his shot while falling and it eluded Duke in the Burton goal to give the Latics a crucial lead.

Athletic continued to dominate the game and took a firm hold on proceedings. Chris Armstrong was booked for a late challenge in the 58th. minute and then Albion had a good spell of control but their pressure came to nothing as the Oldham defence handled all that Burton could muster.

It should have been 0-2 in the 62nd. minute after Winjhard put through Andrews for a one on one with Duke. Andrews made a complete hash of it as he shot too early and ended up blasting the ball wide instead of giving Athletic a two goal cushion. Burton then had a free kick in a dangerous position which Webster thankfully hit over the bar.

In the 71st. minute Andrews was involved with a tackle from behind which brought him a yellow card and he was replaced by Duxbury within a minute of his booking. Latics piled on the pressure and they were unlucky again when an Eyre free-kick from outside the box was deflected away by the defensive wall. In the 81st. minute Winjhard won the ball well on the left and centred for Corazzin who passed the ball to Eyre but his shot was knocked out for a corner. It was all Oldham now and they were looking comfortable and in control but things were soon to take a definite turn.

Armstrong was forced to concede a corner and the resulting corner was laid back to Clough on the edge of the area. The Burton player/manager sent over a pinpoint cross which Moore headed in to bring the Albion back from the dead and gave them a lifeline. In the 88th. minute Albion were awarded a free kick in another dangerous position but the ball was cleared. Hall shot wide in the 90th. minute and on the stroke of full time another free-kick was headed clear by the overworked Albion defence. The score remained at 1-1 so it had to be another 30 minutes of extra time to endure for both teams, extra time that the fans were relishing in this exciting blood and guts tie.

Burton started the first period of extra time with a new belief that they could cause a major upset and they were getting to the ball first and unsettling Athletic which was worrying for the 600 travelling fans. John Eyre was replaced by Chris Killen in the 98th. minute and a minute later Corazzin brought a good save from Duke after his shot took a deflection. Killen should have done better minutes later after he was put clear by Winjhard but his effort was well saved. The rest of the first period was an even affair with Poggi having the last of the action when he made an easy save from Anderson following two consecutive Burton corners.

Into the second period of extra time with the daunting prospect of a penalty shoot-out looming. Killen had the first chance when he volleyed wide from a Sheridan pass. He should have done better as he had time to control the ball but he chose not to do so. In the 108th. minute Hill gave away a needless corner from a poor backpass which was to prove costly. The corner was cleared only for another corner to be awarded on the left.

The resulting corner saw Poggi make his only mistake which proved to be a deadly one. He totally misjudged the flight of the ball and was clutching at straws. He even missed the straws and Moore was on hand to head the ball into the net, for his second goal of the night, to send the home supporters into raptures.

It was a definite case of “Game-On” now with the major shock of the round looming. Burton tried to kill time and the Latics finally realised the need for urgency with time ticking away. With 10 minutes to salvage something from the tie the Latics threw all they had at Burton. Killen headed for goal and the goalie carried the ball over the line for a corner. From the corner the ball was bobbing about like a bobbin in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, legs were flying everywhere, and how the ball didn’t go in was anybody’s guess, but it didn’t. It was constant pressure on the Albion defence now.

With five minutes left Athletic did get the breakthrough which they had fought so hard for. Hall, now playing as an out and out striker, flicked the ball on for Eyres who made no mistake in drilling the ball low to the left of a despairing Duke. It was now the Latics turn to come back from the dead. Were we to have the dreadful lottery of a penalty shoot-out? The next few minutes would be crucial to both teams.

It seemed that Burton would now be happy to settle for a shoot-out and Winjhard had the last shake of the dice but he couldn’t convert his effort just before the final whistle. The result meant that both teams would take part in the excitement of a penalty shoot-out after over three and a half hours of play.

Burton won the toss and elected to shoot first but Poggi saved to give the Latics the upper hand. Winjhard stepped up for the Latics but his shot too was saved to level the scores. Burton scored, Eyres scored. Poggi saved another penalty and Killen scored to put Athletic one up. Burton scored, Hall scored, Burton scored leaving Sheridan the task to win it for Oldham. Sheridan’s shot was saved by Duke making it 3-3.

The suspense continued with sudden death. Burton score, Hill scores, Burton miss. The responsibility falls to Corazzin to win the match. Corazzin steps up. Game over!

A cruel way for any team to go out of a cup but even more so after Burton had put up such a brave fight against their more lofty opponents. Good luck to Nigel Clough and his team for the remainder of the season, their play spoke volumes for the non-league game.