March 23, 1996 - FA Trophy quarter-final
Hyde United 3, Stevenage 2
by David Jones
KING Billy Garton and his terrific Tigers became the new rulers of non-league football on Saturday, as Hyde sent shockwaves around the semi-professional scene.
In a sensational tie watched by more than 2,000 people, the Tigers matched then dispatched the runaway Conference leaders.
With surging attacks and an iron defence, Macca’s men dazzled and dismayed Stevenage to make Hyde odds-on favourites for Wembley. And no one did more than ex-Manchester United star Garton who snuffed out the deadly Hertfordshire strike force.
Garton, who suffered a head wound late on after colliding with Dave Nolan, was named man of the match, but the accolade could have gone to anyone after the Tigers’ best result in living memory.
After 90 minutes they were leading 3-1 but Stoke referee Alan Bates played eight minutes of injury time. It was enough for Stevenage to pull one back, making for a nailbiting last 60 seconds.
The game started and finished at a furious pace. Both sides threw caution to the winds and attacked in depth. In the first five minutes, Arthur Williams had to race out of his area to beat Shaun Marshall, and Ged Kimmins had a shot blocked following a mazy run.
It was like table tennis on speed as play rattled from one end to another. Something had to give and when it did, it happened for Hyde. Kimmins, ghosting past defenders, was bundled off the ball. Nolan had the job of taking another crucial penalty and his low shot left Richard Wilmott grabbing air.
Stevenage had plenty of possession but the Tigers’ brilliant defence had Corey Brown and Barry Hayles struggling, and it was only a breathtaking performance by bandana-clad Efetobor Sodje that held Borough’s defence together.
Hyde could have doubled their score late in the first half but Wilmott dropped like a stone to stop a Tony Carroll shot and then leaped back to palm out a Kimmins cross.
Borough started the second half like an Inter-City express but the Tigers made it 2-0 two minutes after the break. Kimmins chased a long ball down the middle and danced past defenders before hammering home a sizzling shot.
Ewen Fields became a cauldron of noise but Stevenage suddenly began to make an impact with a series of raids from the right and, on 63 minutes, Dave Venables threw the game wide open with a header. Ten minutes later, a 40-yard free kick from Kenny Webster crashed off the bar and bounced on to the line.
Borough hit Hyde with a grandstand finish but, on 83 minutes, the Tigers showed their claws. Paul Varden beat two men with a beautiful piece of controlled football before slipping a pass to Carroll, whose crisp shot had Hyde fans thinking it was all over.
However, the closing minutes seemed like an eternity as Borough went for broke. Seven minutes into injury time, a well-worked ball found Hayles, who shot past Williams.
Hyde: Williams, Gallagher, Switzer, Wilson, Garton, Henshaw, Kimmins (47), Owen, Varden, Carroll (83), Nolan (33 pen). Subs: Cox for Henshaw, Esdaille for Varden, Donnelly for Garton.
Stevenage: Wilmott, Webster, Mitchell, Sodje, Smith, Barrowcliff, Venables (62), Browne, Berry, Marshall, Hayles (97). Subs: Cretton for Marshall, Beever, Gallagher.
Attendance: 2,012.