FA Cup: Kettering Town 2 Stafford Rangers 1 - Report
STAFFORD Rangers are out of the FA Cup for another season after falling to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Kettering Town.
The higher graded hosts took the lead with just six minutes on the clock with Isiah Noel-Williams causing disruption before finding Kai Fifield who curled his effort home.
Moments later Fifield turned provider for Luca Miller whose effort flew into the side-netting.
The Poppies probed for a second and Ben Hart’s cross found Dan Jarvis who headed down off the floor and over.
Boro goalkeeper Cameron Belford was then forced into action to deny Miller’s well-hit effort which looked destined to find the net.
Fifield was causing Rangers a host of problems and on the half-hour mark laid the ball off for Devon Kelly-Evans whose effort whistled just wide.
Stafford went close themselves four minutes before the break with Sean Cooke sending an effort just over.
However, it was Kettering who struck moments later with Jarvis breaking through the defence before finding Noel-Williams and then Fifield to net his second of the afternoon to make it 2-0 at the break.
Rangers were looking for a way back into the tie and James O’Neill’s long throw-in found the head of Dan Cockerline whose effort was tipped wide by the goalkeeper before Joe Robbins sent a shot over.
Then a long ball over the top released Cockerline on the 72nd minute whose volley lobbed the goalkeeper to pull Boro back to 2-1.
However, the lower ranked visitors failed to find an equaliser and made their FA Cup exit.
