ZACH Guinan’s goal was the difference as Worcester City saw off visitors Walsall Wood in this FA Cup extra preliminary round replay.
It was the final tie of the round to be decided as a floodlight failure saw the initial replay abandoned last week.
As a result, the game was reversed to Claines Lane, a decision which suited Worcester as their first half efforts outplayed any of Walsall Wood’s attempts.
Worcester dominated the opening proceedings with a number of chances. There was some direct play early on and the first opportunity came in just the third minute as Guinan flicked a header just wide from a long throw.
The closest two chances came from Elliot Hartley as he saw one effort roll just wide of the post in the 13th minute before heading an attempt over the bar five minutes later.
It was one-way traffic for Worcester, as was reflected by the minimal amount of chances for the visitors. Carter Lycett took two free-kicks, one wide of the mark in the 16th minute and the other caught by Haydn Whitcombe on the half hour mark.
It was a slightly different start to the second half with the added dynamic of rainfall making conditions slippery for both teams at times. Wood started well as Kaiman Anderson caught Worcester on the break and forced a save out Whitcombe at full stretch down to his left.
However, the Wood’s spell didn’t last very long. Worcester went close again in the 55th minute following a defensive error from Kyle Rowley and the ball went out for a corner. And it was following a goalmouth scramble from the flag kick that Guinan was able to capitalise, turning the ball home from inside the box.
Hartley, who had a hand in the goal, nearly doubled the lead in the 67th minute as he broke through but drilled his low effort into the side netting. He found space again three minutes later but was again off target.
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