Wycombe Wanderers 2 Fulham 2
Fulham only survived for a replay against last season’s FA Cup semi-finalists
when Steve Marlet, an £11.5 million acquisition from Lyons, headed
in three minutes from time. For Wycombe Wanderers the dream lives on carrying
on from where they left off at Villa Park nine months ago, refusing to acknowledge
the gap in class between themselves and their supposed superiors. Jermaine
McSporran, a £75,000 capture from Oxford City, gave them a tantalising
lead midway through the second half of an enthralling third-round tie last
night and
With a tie away to either York City or Grimsby Town in the fourth round,
the Nationwide League second division side, who held Liverpool goalless
for 78 semi-final minutes before losing 2-1 last April, could have been
forgiven for believing that they were set for another memorable adventure.
They may well still be. In the meantime, however, it is Wrexham away on
Saturday.
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Steve Marlet scores secon in three games
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“At least we can say we made Fulham look like an English side,”
Lawrie Sanchez, the Wycombe manager, said. “We made them knock it long
and we stopped them passing. At one time I thought we must have swapped
shirts.”
The replay will be next Tuesday and Sanchez is realistic. “I don’t
want to be unduly pessimistic, but it’s going to be very difficult,”
he said. “You only get one bite at a Premiership side.”
Where Leicester City, Wimbledon and Wolverhampton Wanderers succumbed
last season, Fulham so nearly followed. Although Fulham, who reside 45
league placings above their humble opponents, dominated by far the majority
of the meaningful possession, Sanchez’s players lack nothing in resolve
and came within sight of the finishing line.
Marlet, who was on the point of being rested after struggling to adapt
to the pace of the English game following a broken leg, had only previously
scored once since arriving at Craven Cottage in September. But he enamoured
himself to his new team-mates when, with Wycombe intent on repelling anything
that came near their goal, he nodded a centre from Barry Hayles in off
a post.
Fulham had taken the lead 68 seconds into the second half, through Sylvain
Legwinski, before Steve Brown, the man sent off for taking his shirt off
in celebration in the quarter-final triumph at Filbert Street last season,
levelled when McSporran was felled by Alain Goma. Wycombe were making
a swift dash back towards dream land when the striker, who turned 25 on
New Year’s Day, pounced in the 66th minute. There was, however, still
time for reality to kick in.
“At 2-1 I was very worried,” Jean Tigana, the Fulham manager,
said. “From that, it went good. We showed good spirit; we have played
a good team. Marlet is not ready yet and he needs more time after being
out injured for so long.”
Wycombe have strengthened since last season and sit only two points off
the play-off zone with games in hand. Yet after overcoming Hayes and Notts
County to land this glamorous draw, not even the mild-mannered folk of
leafy Bucks could avoid contracting cup fever once again. Neither the
postponement of the tie on Saturday, nor last night’s 15-minute delay
due to traffic congestion, could keep pulses down in High Wycombe.
An expanded Adams Park, a legacy of last season’s lucrative Cup
run, housed a record attendance but in truth the first half was an anti-climax.
Fulham may have been unable to add a new £8 million striker to their
ranks on Monday, when John Carew, the Valencia and Norway forward, failed
a medical, but Wycombe were simply glad to have their £75,000 leading
goalscorer, Andy Rammell, fit again. Of course it should have been an
ill match: Fulham’s starting line-up cost £29,700,000, Wycombe’s
£565,000.
Wycombe’s best chance in the first period came when McSporran, who
missed the Cup glory last season after being ruled out for the second
half of the season with cruciate knee ligament damage, chased down an
ill-advised back-pass from Steve Finnan. Maik Taylor’s clearance
ricocheted off McSporran’s backside and squirmed barely a hard wide.
Fulham’s territorial supremacy brought them shots from distance,
from Steed Malbranque and Marlet, before they finally penetrated at the
start of the second period. Malbranque’s pass eluded Chris Vinnicombe
to release Sylvain Legwinski and, although his initial shot was cleared
from the line by Mark Rogers, the French midfield player was not about
to turn down a second invitation, walloping the ball high into the net.
Sanchez is a manager whose own Wembley match-winner, for Wimbledon against
Liverpool in the 1988 Cup Final, has fuelled him with the belief that
any dream can be fulfilled. He promptly replaced Rammell with Keith Ryan,
one of Martin O’Neill’s old boys, who had scored against Liverpool
in the semi-final, and the home side were galvanised. Unbeaten in the
league at Adams Park this season, belief started to pervade their play,
especially once they went behind.
McSporran, whose pace unnerved Fulham all night, ran at full pelt into
the area where Alain Goma’s mistimed tackle earned Wycombe a penalty
in the 57th minute. Brown struck a poor penalty but, to the sound of several
thousand sighs of relief, Taylor’s one-handed effort could not prevent
the ball from going over the line.
Wycombe’s tails were up; nine minutes later they were ahead. Dannie
Bulman centred low from the right and when the Fulham defence failed to
clear their lines, McSporran commandeered possession. With his back to
goal, he span and shot low and true beyond Taylor’s left hand.
Hayles went close to equalising eight minutes from time before supplying
Marlet for the heart-breaker. Only a fantastic save in stoppage time from
Martin Taylor, the Wycombe goalkeeper, prevented Sean Davis earning Fulham
the victory. At Craven Cottage next Tuesday, the Premiership side know
they have a contest on their hands.
WYCOMBE WANDERERS (4-4-2): Martin Taylor 7 — D Senda 5, M Rogers
6, P McCarthy 7 (sub: J Cousins, 70min 6), C Vinnicombe 7 — D Currie
7 (sub: D Carroll, 74), M Simpson 6, D Bulman 8, S Brown 6 — A Rammell
5 (sub: K Ryan, 47 6), J McSporran 8. Substitutes not used: S Roberts, M
Osborn. Booked: Senda.
FULHAM (4-4-2): Maik Taylor 6 — S Finnan 7, A Melville 5, A
Goma 4, R Brevett 6 — S Legwinski 7, Z Knight 5 (sub: S Davis, 69 6),
S Malbranque 7, J Collins 5 (sub: B Hayles, 69 8) — S Marlet 5, L Saha
4. Substitutes not used: E van der Sar, J Harley, A Stolcers. Booked: Hayles.
Referee: G Barber 5.