Saturday 30th August 2025, Kick-off 15.00
FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round
Farley Way, Quorn
Admission: £12.00
Programme: £2.00 (including free hot or soft drink)
Attendance: 332
REPORT: Quorn 8-0 Sherwood Colliery
By Dan Sheward
After a disappointing result in the league against Barwell, Ryan Beswick’s side bounced back with an 8-0 thumping of Sherwood Colliery in the Emirates FA Cup. Zak Goodson highlighted the win with a stunning hat-kick and Simeon Cobourne opened his Quorn account with a brace. There were also goals for Cain Noble, Jordan Clarke and Silvio Bello.
The first real effort of the game came from Sherwood. Some good hold up play from Craig Westcarr led to the ball finding Alexander Duhameau on the right-hand side of the pitch. A neat touch inside opened-up an opportunity for the number eleven, however his effort shot just wide of the right post.
That opportunity served as a wakeup call, seeing a nice spell of possession for the Reds. The ball on the right-hand side found Bello, who excellently beat his man with some tricky feet, finding the touchline. Driving the ball in to the box it was Quorn’s number 10, Cain Noble who crashed the box and slotted the ball into the back of the net to put Quorn in front.
He wasn’t done there as the goal scorer almost found his second instantaneously. Goodson this time on the right, recreating exactly what his teammate had done previously to set up the goal. Noble, making the late run into the box again, saw his attempt tipped over the bar by Harrison Leech this time.
Quorn look settled after the goal and were enjoying the majority of possession. Goodson, almost having an assist five minutes prior, managed to double the lead. Picking up the ball on the right-hand side of the pitch with plenty of time, he whipped the ball in to the top right-hand corner with a superb strike. Quorn looked much sharper than their lower-league visitors, not only in attack but defence, there was little troubling the home side who were winning almost all the second balls, ensuring possession was retained.
The struggles continued for The Wood as a long ball over the top invited Leech to come out in an attempt to clear the ball. However, it was a frustrating error for the away team as the clearance was smashed straight into Nicholas Hood’s back, falling to Cobourne who tapped it into the empty net. It was a first half to forget for the visitors.
A foul on substitute Jacob Pearce just outside the box side early into the second half presented a golden chance for the away team to gain some hope of mounting a comeback. It was captain, Jamie York’s cross that found Jobe shaw at the front post. His headed effort flew over the bar keeping the score at 3-0 to the home side.
Shortly afterwards Goodson was standing over a free kick, which he whipped into the far corner. The Reds weren’t done there. Captain Reece Fyfe, picking up the ball in the middle of the opposition’s half, shrugged off his man playing a nice pass to Noble who’d made a clever run in behind. Smashing the ball across the face of the goal, Clarke was there to tap the ball home making it five goals for the home side.
After his goal Clarke, Mason Frizelle and Reece Fyfe all made way as Dennis Digie, Jasper Tetlow and new signing Marvellous Onabirekhanlen came on for the final half an hour. The changes didn’t slow the Reds down.
The goals just kept coming as Bello got his name on the score sheet, finding himself confronted with the goal as he was on the end of a rebounded shot from Cobourne. The afternoon for Colliery went from bad to worse as substitute Luke Morgan went off injured after Sherwood had used all of their substitutes, forcing the UCL Premier North side to finish the match with ten men.
Noble almost bagged his brace, a low driven effort from the first goal scorer saw the ball flash just wide of the far post. Quorn withdrew goalkeeper Tom Allsopp, a virtual spectator on the afternoon, making way for eighteen year old Hari Corbett to make his second appearance for the club. Although Allsopp didn’t have much to do, it wasn’t quite as easy for Corbett as he was forced to make a neat save at his near post almost straightaway.
Considering being 6-0 down, Sherwood’s William Norcross looked sharp and didn’t stop creating some inviting chances for his team, even as Quorn’s goal tally increased. Drifting in from the left and beating his man, Cobourne looked to have run out of space and options, cutting back in and looking to pull the ball back, but instead he drove the ball into the top corner from what looked an impossible angle.
Lewis Warnaby received a caution for a vicious foul on Goodson, hacking the forward down from behind on the edge of the box. The Sherwood defender was made to regret it as Goodson stood over the dead ball once again, securing his hat-trick in stunning fashion, curling a free kick into the top corner and putting an exclamation mark on Quorn’s record setting FA Cup win. The margin of victory is the biggest in history for the Reds, topping the 6-0 win at home to Arnold Town in 2006.
It was a brilliant afternoon for Beswick’s side as they progressed into the second qualifying round of the FA Cup for the first time in 14 years, and just fourth time ever. Credit to Sherwood Colliery as they never seemed to drop their heads, playing a large chunk of the game with ten men. Goodson was no doubt the man of the match going home with the match ball after his first hat-trick for the Reds.
