FA Carlsberg National League System Cup
Preliminary Round
Southern Amateur League 6 Kent County League 3
Wednesday 21 February 2007
Carshalton Athletic FC

The Southern Amateur League, established in 1907, has three senior divisions of mostly Old Boys and Bank teams.

Their representative side played their first ever fixture in the FA National League System Cup at Colston Avenue last night and a crowd of over 50 saw them win a nine-goal thriller against the Kent County League, semi-finalists in the last competition.

The NLS Cup is contested by leagues from Step 7 in the "pyramid" of non-League football - as well as other selected leagues like the Southern Amateur League and the Isle of Man League, the latter having beaten the Cambridgeshire County League 4-0 in last year's Final at Cambridge United FC. The winners represent England in the UEFA Regions Cup, a bi-annual tournament for amateur leagues across Europe.

After an even first ten minutes the SAL "Reds" took the lead. A low cross from the right bounced off a KCL defender and Nottsborough striker Alex Ewin showed great composure to control the ball in a muddy goalmouth before slipping it past 'keeper Carl O'Neil. On 22 minutes it was 2-0, West Wickham midfielder Adam Wadey hitting a clean shot from 25 yards that flew over the advancing O'Neil's head.

There had only been two goals in the first half, although the SAL could have had five or six. But it was goals all the way in the second, with one for each side inside the first five minutes. A KCL effort in a crowded box from Lewisham Borough's Sheldon Brown bobbled over the line after clipping a defender's heel (2-1) and Nathan Violet, another Nottsborough player, shot across the 'keeper into the far corner to preserve the SAL's two-goal advantage (3-1).

With Norsemen 'keeper Dan Ashley stranded outside the box, Cray Valley's Matt Knuckey astutely lobbed the ball into an empty net for the KCL on 56 minutes (3-2). West Wickham centre-back Neil Currie bundled the ball in for the SAL from close range on 67 minutes (4-2) but almost immediately Dean Flood, also from Cray Valley, netted with a textbook header (4-3). It continued to rain goals as Andreas Atkins and Ewin again scored for the SAL in the last ten minutes to finally put the tie beyond the visitors.

In the next round the SAL will play either the Essex & Suffolk Border League or the Middlesex County League.