FC Halifax Town  2
Nantwich Town 2 (6-4 on agg.)
FA Trophy (Semi-Final 2nd Leg)

Match Report

Nantwich Town’s dreams of Wembley were dashed in the FA Trophy semi-final, despite a heroic performance away at National League opponents Halifax.

The Dabbers held FC Halifax Town to a 2-2 draw in the semi-final second leg, but lost the tie on aggregate 6-4.

The Shaymen took the lead after just four minutes when Jordan Burrows turned home after a cross found him the penalty area.

Nantwich levelled on nine minutes when Sean Cooke played in Liam Shotton who slotted home to make it 1-1 on the day.

The Dabbers dominated their higher league opponents in front of a crowd of more than 3,000.

And they deservedly took the lead on the 30-minute mark when a Sean Cooke corner was headed home by Mat Bailey.

After the break, Nantwich went looking for the aggregate equaliser despite injuries to Bailey, Sam Hall and Liam Shotton, and carved out a number of chances.

But in the 89th minute a Nicky Wroe cross was turned into his own net by unlucky defender Andy White.

Despite five minutes of injury time, Nantwich couldn’t find the two goals they needed to turn the tie around again.

Assistant manager Neil Sorvel said his players should be “proud” of their achievements in their FA Trophy run, which has seen them beat three higher league sides and almost a fourth.

Match report written by the Nantwich News