Kettering Town 2 - 4 Fulham

Cottagers leave it late

Updated: January 24, 2009, 12:43 PM ET

Kettering fans saw their hopes of an FA Cup fairytale dashed by two late goals from Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora as Fulham emerged with a 4-2 fourth round win.

• Cooper delighted with effort

But the FA Cup was rocking down Rockingham Road on an afternoon as dramatic as football gets.

Kettering were as brave as they were brilliant. They made a mockery of the 92 places which separate the clubs in football's hierarchy.

And for great swathes of this match they played the better football with two goals from Craig Westcarr which will live long in East Midlands folklore.

This was an authentic FA Cup occasion. A throwback to football's old values.

The Kettering supporters delighted in their chants of "Who are ya'', as Fulham captain Aaron Hughes urged on his side on a pitch which was full of the bumps and bobbles which make days like this so unpredictable.

Television might have snubbed the chance of seeing history in the making but the 5,406 who shoehorned their way into the ground were determined to have a party come what may.

And delivering the miracle of a place in the fifth round of the FA Cup did not look so fanciful after a first half in which Kettering matched the class of their Premier League opposition with huge industry of their own.

Even so they went behind after 12 minutes and even the Kettering faithful had to applaud.

A whipped-in cross from Clint Dempsey on the right was met by Simon Davies whose right-foot volley lasered its way into the net of Kettering goalkeeper Lee Harper.

The dream looked likely to end almost before it had begun as Fulham settled to their task.

But the cup brings the best out of footballers, especially grass-roots footballers.

And while Fulham sauntered about in midfield, missing the bite of Jimmy Bullard following his transfer to Hull, the hosts began to grow in confidence.

The long throw of defender Exodus Geohaghon was a constant menace but it was Westcarr's raiding on the right which was causing most problems.

And it was Westcarr who deservedly brought Kettering level in the 34th minute after his stirring run had been halted just outside the penalty box by Hughes.

Westcarr lined up the free-kick himself on the angle of the area and promptly sent his shot flying into Schwarzer's net, albeit via a slight deflection off the wall on the way in.

The Kettering players hugged wildly. The stands went stark, raving bonkers. The dream was back on.

Kettering's Richard Graham then went into referee Mike Riley's notebook for what was adjudged to be a dive, although it appeared a large chunk of the supporters believed it was a stonewall penalty.

But Kettering had been given something to hang on to and they did so with the jaw-like grip of a bull terrier.

But then came a cruel blow for the non-league side. A speculative shot from Danny Murphy from outside the box took a wicked deflection off Geohaghon after 76 minutes and ended up flying past goalkeeper Harper.

The drama, however, was not over. Five minutes later Westcarr was brought down inside the box by Hangeland and referee Riley pointed to the spot.

Westcarr promptly slid the spot kick home for a deserved equaliser.

Even then there was more drama when first Johnson and then Zamora scored late goals to send Fulham through.

Cooper delighted with effort

Kettering manager Mark Cooper paid tribute to his non-league battlers after they had been cruelly denied an FA Cup replay.

Cooper said: "The players are sick. They're gutted. They should have won. They deserved to win but it's a cruel, cruel game. We missed numerous chances. But it was an unbelievable performance against a Premier League side. It will be a long time before another non-league team puts in a better show against the big boys.''

Cooper believed referee Mike Riley should have sent off Hangeland, instead of handing out a yellow card for the foul on Westcarr which led to the penalty.

Cooper, however, was convinced the pulsating tie proved that television had got it wrong when they decided to snub it.

He said: "I bet they wish they had come here now. It shows the cup is not about Manchester United against Tottenham and Cardiff against Arsenal. It's about non-league teams on their own ground taking on the big boys.''

Kettering goal-scorer Westcarr had mixed emotions, happy to have slotted two goals against Premier League opposition but disappointed not to be in the fifth-round draw.

Westcarr said: "We're all proud even though we let ourselves down in the last five minutes. We're quite happy. We've fulfilled our dream but we are also annoyed with ourselves. But it was a great occasion and a great atmosphere.''

Westcarr also insisted Hangeland should have been sent off. "He got hold of me and ripped my shirt,'' he said.

Fulham manager Roy Hodgson, who saw midfielder Jimmy Bullard leave for Hull this week, was just grateful to have come through what was the trickiest of cup ties in which Simon Davies scored the opening goal with a terrific volley.

He said: "A draw here would have been a defeat in our minds. But the players showed they have enough fight and character to come back and win a game when at 2-2 we were fearing the worst.

"But we've still had just one defeat in 13 and we have to take a lot of pride from that. The players had to dig deep and while it wasn't the fun occasion some might have dreamt of, it was a thoroughly professional performance.

"Anything other than professional preparation could have seen an upset on the cards. Kettering put us under a lot of pressure and there was always the danger that we might make a mistake but I think we were good value for our four goals.''