Flowserve cruised into the semi-finals
NEWARK FLOWSERVE cruised into the semi-finals of the East Midlands Counties League Cup with a 5-0 win at home to Rainworth Miners’ Welfare, but they left it late before adding the goals that summed up their superiority on the night.
The Highwaymen now face a meeting with league adversaries Radford FC in the last four at a neutral venue that has yet to be determined.
Flowserve brought in Elliot King in place of Daryl Price up front, while Sol Miller moved into midfield in place of the injured Danny Meadows - whose swollen knee may sideline him for four weeks - and club skipper James Cullingworth slotted in to Miller’s berth at right-back in his long-awaited return from a broken leg.
Tyrell Shannon-Lewis opened the account with a sixth minute penalty after he was brought down in the box and picked himself up to net his 16th of the season, and it seemed at that stage as though the league leaders were set for a sackful of goals against their 17th-placed visitors.
But the men in orange had to wait until the 34th minute before Shannon-Lewis struck again with a neat lob over the keeper after being set free with a delightful chip from skipper Tom Potts.
Four minutes later Callum Pursglove fired a direct free-kick over the defensive wall and high over the bar in the only shot anywhere near the target that Rainworth managed to muster in a first period that Flowserve dominated to embarrassing effect.
The second half continued in the same vein, with the action resembling a full-scale training workout for the home side rather than a quarter-final of a cup competition.
Visiting substitute Charlie Hardwick finally forced a save out of Nathan Burrows in the 53rdminute when he cut inside from the right and shot with his left foot, with the boot of Burrows coming to the rescue.
The boot of Rainworth left-back Joe Toon then put Jack Beckett in the air to launch a scuffle between both sets of players as Welfare resorted to the physical side of the game in an attempt to mask their footballing inadequacies.
But the gap between the two side was finally highlighted when The Highwaymen put Rainworth to the sword with three goals in the closing eight minutes of the contest.
Jack Beckett’s thunderous 85th minute left foot half volley was like an oasis in the desert of the second period as his stunning strike tore into the top corner of the net past a static keeper.
A minute into stoppage time saw the lively substitute Chris Richards cross for Jammy Lloyd to loop a header home, and then Beckett added his second of the game two minutes later when he sidefooted home from close range after Lloyd squared the ball from the right after being released by Richards.
Job done. Bigger fish to fry.
Newark Flowserve: 1 Nathan Burrows; 2 James Cullingworth (Curtis Price 59mins); 3 Will Rawdon; 4 Tom Potts (captain); 5 Rhys Lewis; 6 Jammy Lloyd; 7 Jack Beckett; 8 Sol Miller (Chris Richards 59 mins); 9 Elliot King (Ryan Broxholme 71mins); 10 Tyrell Shannon-Lewis; 11 Blair Anderson.
Attendance: 157.