Morpeth heading to Wembley after semi-final win

Action from Morpeth Town v Bowers and Pitsea at Craik Park this afternoon in the FA Vase semi-final second leg. Picture by Jane Coltman.

Luke Carr scored the winner in injury time at Craik Park to make it 2-1 on the day and 4-3 on aggregate against Bowers and Pitsea of Essex.

The majority of the 1,256 in attendance were jubilant and some of the Morpeth fans ran onto the pitch when the full time whistle was blown to greet their heroes.

Sean Taylor put the home side in front after three minutes, but Morpeth missed chances to go further ahead and the visitors equalised with a goal from Lewis Manor seven minutes before half time.

It was a tense second half and even though Bowers and Pitsea’s Ross Adams was sent off in the closing stages, both sides had chances to win the game.

In the end, man-of-the-match Carr turned home a Graydon free kick and it was party time a few minutes later.

Morpeth will now play Hereford FC in the final of the FA Vase on Sunday, May 22.

After the game, Town chairman Ken Beattie said: “Bowers and Pitsea were a resilient side, but I always had the feeling that we would win.

“What a way for it to happen, a goal in injury time. They hit the post just a few minutes beforehand and that’s football, it was our day.

“It was amazing to have such a big crowd cheering the lads on and it’s unbelievable to think that we will now be playing at Wembley.

“It’s fantastic that we’ll be playing against the reborn Hereford team as there will be a lot of national attention on the game. The Hereford name has a lot of history, including a famous FA Cup win over Newcastle United in the 1970s.

“The victory today was for all the people who have been associated with Morpeth Town over many years. Their hard work has been invaluable.”