Southall FC  1-3  Sporting Bengal UTD FC (after extra time)
Saturday 25 September 2004

History was recently made when Sporting Bengal played their first game in The FA Vase.

Prior to 1974 it was called the FA Amateur Cup, but as many amateur footballers started to be paid the competition was renamed The FA Vase. All finals were held at Wembley until it’s recent demolition.

Sporting Bengal were paired with Southall FC, from the Combined Counties League, in the Second Qualifying Round of the Vase. Having previously had Les Ferdinand and Terry Fenwick involved at the club this was going to be a tough encounter for the novices of the competition.

The first half saw little action in front of goal as both teams took a cautious approach trying to suss each other out. The only notable chance came Sporting’s way as Daniel Gabriel headed over from close range in the 30th minute.

The game opened up with both teams creating decent chances in the second half. Southall generally kept the ball better with their agile and skilful midfield quartet pulling all the strings.

However, the best chance of the game fell to Sporting who failed to convert a simple chance. As life in football goes this missed opportunity was followed by a goal from Southall in the 60th minute. From initial neat play, Southall’s striker scrambled the ball in for the opener.

This stirred Sporting into retaining the ball better and creating more chances. Several opportunities went begging until player manager Micky Leslie decided to bring on a third striker, Prince Pipim. The impact was evident within minutes as Prince constantly harassed the Southall defence into making errors, which otherwise looked calm and assured.

The pressure from Daniel Gabriel, Abul Hussain and Pipim paid dividend in the 78th minute, when Southall’s defence did not deal with a cross from Karlos Chambers and Pipim smashed in the equaliser from close range.

The 90 minutes ended with both teams on 1-1 but with Sporting looking far stronger than their opponents. The Southall players would have probably settled for penalties but 30 minutes of extra time had to be played.

The additional 30 minutes were a complete contrast to normal time as Sporting’s superior fitness meant constant pressure on the Southall goal. Inevitably a solo effort resulted in a brilliant finish from Hussain to give Sporting the lead in the 99th minute.

A frustrated Southall defence saw one of their better defenders sent off soon after, which really sealed their fate as Gabriel scored Sporting’s third for a famous victory.

Sporting’s next match in this famous competition is away to Ipswich Wanderers on 23 October. Any fans wishing to travel to that game are requested to contact club secretary, Sana Miah, on 07951 115 656.