GARSTON VETS LEAGUE INVITATIONAL CUP SEMI-FINAL

TANSLEY 4 MACCABI LONDON LIONS 3 (after extra-time)

The strong wind and wet pitch made conditions difficult for all the players and certainly affected the ability of the sides to play.

Lions started the stronger, and took an early lead when Craig Pearl bent one into the top corner from the edge of the box.

On top, this is where the game was up for grabs, but the Lions were unable to add to that goal. Saul Conway rounded the keeper but fired his shot wide and then denied by the crossbar was minutes later.

Mike Pearson then headed over from Josh Bentley’s superb cross and there were further openings passed up.

Tansley though were a real threat, Lions' goalkeeper Rob Abrahams saving superbly from a point-blank header, but the hosts levelled the scoring when their lively striker turned Guy Morris before finishing with aplomb.

With the conditions in their favour in the second half, Tansley were able to get the ball forward quickly, and for a period had Lions on the back foot, Abrahams though equal to all thrown at him.

But when the visitors conceded a free-kick 25 yards out, the ball was whipped up and over the wall and Abrahams’ despairing dive to give the home side the lead.

Lions responded, and when Conway broke down the left and delivered, Pearson showed his strength and pace to beat the keeper to the ball and head home and equaliser.

Into extra-time and Lions conceded two horrible goals in two minutes. A cross from the left was headed home at the far post before an inswinging corner held up in the wind, deceiving Abrahams as it floated straight in.

The visitors threw caution to the wind (literally), and when Conway raced onto Stanton’s through ball to prod home past the advancing keeper they had six minutes to throw the kitchen sink at it. This they did, with Max Radford firing wide before a decent penalty shout was waved away. But in the end they came up just short.

LIONS: Rob Abrahams, David Soutar, Adam Harvey, Rob Glass, Guy Morris, Alex Levack, Craig Pearl, Josh Bentley, Daniel Stanton, Saul Conway, Mike Pearson. Subs: Hadley Silver, James Abrams, Max Radford

SCORERS: Pearl, Pearson, Conway