Dereham Town won the 2018 Stuart Dracup Cup Final last night at The FDC.

Dereham controlled the opening stages of the match with Costessey unable to get out of their own half. Dereham captain, Hayden Summerfield, was keeping his team on the front foot with expansive passing releasing Town’s wide players.

Against the run of play, Costessey Sports opened the scoring in the 13^th minute when a long ball forward allowed Tom Moore to show great pace and slot the ball calmly into the bottom right hand corner of the goal past the Dereham goalkeeper, Jack Harvey.

Dereham’s dominance was rewarded when Graveling equalised with a great strike from the angle with 25 minutes played. He out-muscled his opponent and showed great pace to create the shooting opportunity.

With less than five minutes remaining in the half Dereham took the lead for the first time in the game. Fletcher Pemberton latched onto a ball through the Costessey defence and smashed the ball past the goalkeeper giving him no chance.

Half Time – Costessey Sports 1-2 Dereham Town

With 11 minutes played in the second half, Costessey equalised with a goal very similar to their first. A long ball forward allowed Tom Moore to get in behind the Town back line and thanks to a kind ricochet his effort ended up in the Dereham goal.

Dereham regained the lead with the best goal of the match. A cross into the Costessey box was cleared and passed to the feet of Kyle Nichols at 30 yards out. He took a touch to set himself and then fired a glorious strike that dipped just in time to nestle into the top left corner, leaving the keeper no chance.

In the final minutes Town had a couple of glorious chances to extend their lead to two goals. A Town forward rounded the goalkeeper but his shot steered agonisingly into the post, his strike partner then mistimed a volley from 5 yards out and finally Costessey's Ryan John made an outstanding last ditch block in the 6 yard box. 

This resilience from Costessey encouraged the thought of a last minute equaliser and a late free kick in which the keeper pushed forward looked promising. However the Dereham back line held firm and cleared to safety, allowing the Magpies to hold on and win their first Stuart Dracup Cup Final. 

Full Time - Costessey Sports 2-3 Dereham Town

Line-Ups

Costessey Sports: Charlie Phillips, George Phillips, Marley Mitchell, Joe Boardman, James Blyth ©, Edon Mehana, Solo Dybala, Gabby Mendoza, Ryan John, Tom Moore, Blake Hale.

Substitutes: Alfie Barnard

Dereham Town: Jack Harvey, Dan Aldous, Bryce Abery Neale, Shadrak Mushengezi, Oscar Albrow, Alex Tuley, Keusan Mushengezi, Hayden Summerfield ©, Victorie Mushengezi, Cameron Graveling, Kyle Nichols.

Substitutes: Ryan Forbes, Rowan Scott Rowlands, Fletcher Pemberton, Hayden Noyes.

Referee: Mark Swaby

Assistants: Matt Friend, Tom Rampling

Fourth Official: Craig Guy

Player of the Match: Hayden Summerfield

Attendance: 148