Saints win it from the spot

North 1, St Martin's 1 (a.e.t. Saints win 3-2 on penalties)

THE woodwork was the deciding factor as St Martin's edged through a tense encounter from the penalty spot last night to reach the Stranger Cup semi-finals.

At the end of the day, goals win matches and North had only themselves to blame for the gilt-edged chances they spurned, depriving them of a win they would have deserved, with Saints facing their first real test of this season and playing their part in an epic encounter.

Successful spot kicks from Marc McGrath, Dom Heaume and Tom Strawbridge eventually won the day, with a surprising three attempts coming back off the crossbar, as well as Nigel Hutton's effort in normal time.

That 20-yard volley in the 50th minute would have been worthy of winning any match but summed up the frustration of both sides as they were unable to break through in the allotted 90 minutes.

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