Sometimes you’ve just got to accept that you’ve lost to a better team.  Shildon were second best for most of yesterday’s Preliminary Round of the Emirates FA Cup.

Despite in the second half scoring a goal and playing better, Tadcaster Albion clearly deserved to progress to the next round.

In Joe Lumsden, the Brewers had a match winner who gave a great display of forward play: excellent movement and runs, closing down Shildon defenders and some neat, clinical finishing.  He was aided and abetted by their No. 7 Carey Stewart. The two combined time and again to trouble Shildon.

For their part, Shildon started ok, with Keith Graydon spraying the ball around from central midfield, but after 10 minutes or so Tadcaster took a grip on the game and never looked like losing it after that.

Their first goal came in the ninth minute when a ball came over the top, it caught the Shildon defence square and flat-footed.   Lumsden took it round Shildon keeper Shaun Newbrook and slotted it in.

At the other end Jack Blackford was struggling as Shildon’s lone and isolated striker, with Tadcaster’s defence looking comfortable when dealing with Railwaymen attacks.

Shildon didn’t play with much confidence, giving the ball away cheaply and not looking as sharp as they usually do.

The closest they came to scoring in the first half was in the 33rd minute when a cross by Matty Robson was almost put into his own goal by Albion defender Josh Barrett.  In the last 10 minutes of the half Shildon played better and created two half chances but Tadcaster doubled their lead just before the break when Lumsden passed to Billy Whitehouse, took the return ball and placed his shot past Newbrook.

Two minutes after the break Lumsden almost got his hat-trick when he struck a volley into the side netting.

In the 57th minute Shildon gave themselves a bit of hope.  Graydon sent over a looping free kick into the Tadcaster box, Daniel Moore rose above everyone else to head it in to make it 2-1.

Seconds later it could have been 3-1 when Newbrook pulled off an excellent save to stop a Stewart shot.

Around the hour mark Shildon had their best spell of possession, including a Billy Greulich-Smith shot over the bar.  Meanwhile, Ben Trotter managed to clear another Albion shot off the line.  Matthew Waters and Danny Earl came on as subs but they couldn’t help turn the game around.

In the last 10 minutes Tadcaster scored another two to put the finishing touches to an impressive performance, with strikes by Whitehouse and Stewart who deserved to get on the score sheet.

And finally, a word for all the Shildon supporters who made the journey to Yorkshire, proud in their red tops and with their clubs flags and banners.  The bar did brisk business, but there’s no FA Cup glory for them his year.

Tadcaster Albion 4 Shildon 1 – Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round.

Mike Snowdon