A Defeat Against 12 Men | THE TURF 2-3 DUBMIRE FIRST FC

The match started with both teams probing for weaknesses, yet the Turf were quick to faulter, panicking with the ball and lumping possession away unnecessarily. It was Dubmire who broke the deadlock first in the 20th minute, with the attacker running through towards goal, seeing the resident keeper of the day, Nick, charging out towards him, Dubmire took the lead with a simple tap-in to give them an early lead, handing The Turf FC the challenge of chasing the game.

Despite the setback, The Turf FC responded positively and equalised in the 35th minute when Matty Wheatley was slipped through with a superb pass from Lewis Currie, as their goalkeeper rushed off his line to meet it, but was met with a strong 50/50 as Matty slotted the ball home for the equalizer, reigniting the home side's hopes. However, it would be short lived as Dubmire struck again, rushing the left-hand side as the attacker was brought down for a penalty, converted in the 40th minute to make the score 2-1 in favour of the away side. This goal was followed shortly by a third from a defensive mistake in the 45th minute, as a poor pass was intercepted before Dubmire capitalized on the opportunity with a header past the keeper, leaving The Turf FC trailing 3-1 at the break.

Following the half-time interval, The Turf FC made tactical substitutions, introducing Hubert Szordykowski for Jak Booth and Damo Freeman for Tommy High, both aimed at reinvigorating their attack. However, following a first half injury concern, the Turf were forced to swap out goalkeeper Nick Dow in the 55th minute, replaced by Andy Gowland between the sticks. The Turf FC needed a spark, but frustrations bubbled with a constant flow of poor decisions by the referee, including a number of offside calls in the first half, a deliberate handball by Dubmire that should have been a yellow card during play, and finally, to cap it off, showing yellow to Andy Gowland in goal for a handball within the 18 yard box in the 65th minute.

Needing another push for a driving force, managerial decisions led to further substitutions to liven up the game: Ian Johnstone came on for Dan Gowland while Jack Dawson replaced Liam Henry, aimed at injecting fresh legs into the midfield and defence as the formation changed to a 3-5-2 for added attacking pressure. The changes paid off in the 75th minute when Joe Currie capitalised on a goalmouth scramble to score, narrowing the deficit to 3-2, but there was still work to be done.

The Turf FC pushed for an equaliser, but despite their best efforts, the Turf could not find the equaliser, and the match concluded with Dubmire taking the victory 3-2. Joe Currie emerged as a standout performer, making significant contributions at right-back throughout the match, but ultimately, it was not enough to secure a place in the next round of the cup, leaving the Turf to reflect on missed opportunities as they move forward in their campaign.