FA Cup 2nd Qualifying Round Saturday 29 September 2007 - Treyew Road - kick off 3.00pm

City were given a huge scare by Weston League side Truro City before they could book their place in the 3rd Qualifying Round of this season’s FA Cup. While on paper there were three leagues between the sides, as expected, on the pitch this gulf was nowhere to be seen. City’s cause was not helped by easily their poorest performance of the season, but this was clearly in part due to the efforts of the home side. Of course, despite being in the Western League, Truro are no usual club at that level, with the millions of owner Kevin Heaney behind them and talk of going full-time next season in the Southern League.

For a 10-15 minute spell at the start of the game it had looked as if it would be a more comfortable afternoon than expected. City got off to a perfect start when, with just 90 seconds on the clock, Chris Holland rose above Harris to head Mark McKeever’s cross past Chapman. Boosted by this, City looked capable of showing however much money you throw at a team there is still a gulf in class to the Blue Square South. Dave Gilroy was denied a clear penalty when he was knocked to the ground by Ash, Holland headed another McKeever centre wide and Darren Edwards saw a shot blocked on the line following a nod back by Lewis Hogg – back in the side after his suspension. During this promising opening for City, Watkins wasted a good chance for Truro after Paul Evans failed to deal with a long ball forward. Slowly, though, City began to lose their way and the Cornwall side started to look a danger. Most of their best play came through ex-City player Scott Walker, and it was his cross that Watkins headed straight at Evans. The home side then had a strong shout for a penalty turned down when Holland appeared to climb all over Martin, but three minutes later the referee was pointing at the spot following a much less clear-cut handball infringement by City’s scorer. As the official was blowing his whistle the ball was lashed into the net so Truro’s sense of injustice was palpable when Wills dragged the spot-kick well wide of Evans’ goal. Evans then produced a fine stop from Wills 20-yard effort and another free header, this time from Broad, was directed straight at City’s keeper. City attempted to stem the tide with a change of formation – switching to 3-5-2 – but this had little effect as a series of four corners in quick succession showed. In truth, though, for all the White Tiger’s dominance City’s backline was looking strong and it was clearly beginning to annoy both the home players and supporters, so used to opponents rolling over in league matches. A bout of handbags just before the interval summed up the frustration on both sides.

The start of the second period was delayed by an injury to referee Mr Powell – eventually his duties were taken over by one of the linesman with Truro’s goalkeeping coach, Deba Sidhu, running the line for the second half – but the Cornwall side came flying out of the blocks. Gethin Jones had to clear a Watkins shot off the line after 49 minutes and Evans reacted well to deny Wills four minutes later. It just looked like a matter of time before an equaliser arrived, as City were forced into aimless clearances from defence and the pressure was almost continuous. Gethin Jones’ last-ditch tackle prevented Tolley converting Gosling’s centre and Harris stabbed the ball just wide following Walker’s free-kick. However, slowly Truro’s momentum began to fade and for a 20 minute spell it looked as if City had weathered the storm. Their cause was helped by the 70th minute introduction of Phil Walsh, as City suddenly had an outlet for their clearances. The lanky striker holding the ball up well and finally applying some pressure to Truro’s defence with his direct running. The home side had brought on Yetton six minutes earlier – their top scorer inexplicably not starting the game – and after a quiet start where Gethin Jones and Holland dealt with his arrival, he began to show the sort of play that saw him score 72 times last season. He looked to have levelled proceedings with eight minutes left only for a full-stretch Evans to turn his low shot round the post. From the resultant corner he headed narrowly over the bar. Edwards then wasted a great chance to put the game beyond Truro’s reach – shooting straight at Chapman when clean through – and this miss meant there was time for one final scare. Yetton collected the ball just inside the City box and, as Holland’s challenge came in, tumbled to the ground. The stand-in referee pointed to the spot before his attention was drawn to the lineman who already flagged the unstable front-man offside. A few minutes later the final whistle blew and City could look forward to further – but probably no tougher – FA Cup adventures ahead.

Whether it was the first minute goal lulling them into a false sense of security or just an average day at the office, City can consider themselves somewhat fortunate to still be in this season’s FA Cup. As expected Truro, after the opening 15 minutes, looked anything but a Western League side and, assuming their backer doesn’t pull out like so many others have in non-league circles, could well be facing City again in the not too distant future in a league encounter. In the end, though, the result is the important thing – especially in a cup match – and, despite all Truro’s possession, City’s defence rarely buckled and certainly never broke.