Clipstone beaten in Notts FA Senior Cup upset

Already languishing near the foot of the East Midlands Counties League, Premier Division table, Clipstone were on the receiving end of a giantkilling upset, losing 2-1 at Bingham Town, who play a level below them on the non-league ladder.

OK, Bingham top the Notts Senior League, Senior Division table, but Clipstone were well on top for the first quarter of the tie, only to mysteriously lose control from then on.

Hoole said: “I am very disappointed. After the first 25 minutes, I didn’t see that coming, and I don’t understand why we just stopped playing.

“Parts of our work were not as we had planned or practised, and parts of our skills were not quite at the level we expect.

“Bingham are a strong side, and they have been top of their league for a while now, so once they’d had a few chances, you could see their confidence grow.”

Clipstone’s bright start saw them hit the woodwork twice, first from a thunderbolt strike by man-of-the-match Josh Ing which ricocheted off the bar, and then from a poked effort by Marcus Beddoe that camne back off a post.

But the match turned when Bingham also hit a post, with the rebounded effort somehow blocked on the line, and the hosts went on to dominate the second half.

They took the lead through Jake Hardy and although the Cobras were given a lifeline by Josh Pickering, it would have been harsh on Bingham not to take the victory and the winning goal from Euan Sweeting deserved to win any game. After picking the ball up, Sweeting got it out of his feet and unleashed a drive from 30 yards that gave Sam Ogden no chance in the Clipstone goal.

The Cobras were due to return to league action on Tuesday night in a crunch match at home to bottom-of-the-table Borrowash Victoria before travelling to meet mid-table Leicestershire outfit Ingles on Saturday.