A first-half Fraser Barlow goal from a well-worked corner routine and a late finish from substitute Jake Prince was enough to put the JFA Combination through to the semi-finals of the FA Inter-League Cup, where they will face Dorset Premier Football League.
While Southern Amateur League rarely threatened on Saturday, Jersey were made to work hard for the win in a game of few clear-cut chances.
‘It was not our most fluid game in terms of the last third of the pitch,’ admitted Cassidy
‘We’re normally a lot more careful in the final third but credit to them. They’ve got big strong defenders and nobody’s going to roll-over and let us play our lovely football. I am really pleased with the players to get that win. We now have a semi-final against Dorset to look forward to.’
The game was made all the more difficult for both sides in horrible weather of wind, rain and hailstorms, and although Jersey struggled to create many clear openings in the game, Cassidy can be thankful for a having a wealth of attacking options to come off the bench.
‘I think the conditions suited them more than us,’ he added. ‘They had some big physical players who liked the ball in the air but this is a fortress for us here at Springfield, we know we can play better but that just bodes well for the next couple of rounds.
‘I made positive substitutions with two forward players. We thought with them pushing on Prince can get in behind them and Logan [McGhee] has been on fire this season … we thought we could nick something before the end of the game and that’s the way it worked out.’
Match report in Monday’s JEP.
