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Duncan Castles at The Times |
Accrington 1 Fulham 3
"INDUSTRY and prudence conquer" is the stolid northern wisdom embroidered on the breast of Accrington Stanley's red shirts. It was the little Lancashire club's misfortune to meet a Premier League team who have been extolling such values for two pugnacious years.
Fulham traversed the FA Cup's longest journey yesterday - from ninth in the top tier to 11th in League Two - with the same focus and determination they displayed while upsetting Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and the Europa League. Against opponents who raised their game on a pitch akin to a mogul run, Roy Hodgson's men worked hard to make the fifth round.
"They know their pitch well and are a very energetic, enthusiastic, hard-working team," said Hodgson. "We can talk about these conditions but until you go out and experience them it's only words. We don't play against many teams that never stop the ball at the back and thrust it straight forward."
It was an assessment that did Accrington little justice. For 45 minutes they played clever football, ultimately succumbing to a red-card-inflicted shortage of numbers. "Long ball?" queried Accrington manager John Coleman. "That does surprise me because I thought some of our passing was very incisive. We've absolutely played them off the park in the first half, and it was a bit of a travesty that we only went in level."
Forget Premier League, the Crown Ground is barely Football League: capacity creeping over 5,000, corrugated-iron stands and a pitch to frighten a spirit level. "It'll be a shock for them when they see the changing rooms," said Accrington substitute Billy Kee. Fulham weren't fussed. The squad arrived stripped and ready to play.
If Accrington eschew modern comforts, loyalty is a quality they possess in spades. No Football League manager has enjoyed a longer tenure than Coleman, his 10 years and eight months at Stanley surpassed only by Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsène Wenger in the senior divisions he returned the club to in 2006.
Accrington started brightly with striker Michael Symes drew a smart save from Mark Schwarzer. The goalkeeper, who had taken a local cab to arrive ahead of his teammates, was soon under pressure again, turning away Sean McConville's strike. That Fulham needed a foothold could be seen in Erik Nevland's wild shot high over the bar. His finishing was more accurate from Fulham's first corner. Damien Duff delivered from the right, Tony Kallio headed down and Nevland converted.
Accrington refused to be cowed. Chasing up the slope, they again found space in Fulham's rearguard. Schwarzer did well to turn away Jimmy Ryan's low strike, but the ball broke for McConville to recycle across the area and there was Symes to take his tally for the season to 14. Yet Accrington's aggression cost them at the back. Darran Kempson had already been cautioned when the centre-back hurtled through Zoltan Gera from the rear. A red was inevitable.
Asked to fill in at left back for the second half, Bobby Grant sprinted forward to volley across the face of Schwarzer's goal. With the pitch deteriorating and 10-man Accrington tiring, Danny Murphy sent Duff into the area, from where the Irishman smuggled a shot into the net. Resistance broken, Accrington conceded once more with Gera's smart finish.
Yellow cards: Accrington: Kempson Fulham: Baird, Gera Red cards: Kempson
Referee: S Attwell Attendance: 3,712
ACCRINGTON: Bouzanis 6, Lees 6, Edwards 6, Kempson 4, Winnard 6, McConville 7 (Kee 63min), Procter 6, Ryan 7, Miles 7 (Joyce 85min), Symes 7, Grant 7
FULHAM: Schwarzer 7, Kelly 6, Hughes 5, Hangeland 6, Kallio 5 (Elm 56min, 6), Riise 5, Murphy 7, Baird 6, Duff 7 (Dikgacoi 67min), Gera 6 (Davies 84min), Nevland 7
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