Stags Reach Round Three

Accrington Stanley 2-2 Mansfield Town *1-3 pens aet (FA Cup Round Two) 06.12.2025

An injury-hit Mansfield Town came from behind, twice, requiring penalties to see off lowly League Two opposition and reached the FA Cup Third Round for the fourth time in six seasons, on Saturday afternoon.

Home-grown shot-stopper, Owen Mason, in for the injured Liam Roberts, is a product of the Mansfield Academy; he became the hero in the shoot-out when saving three of hosts Accrington Stanley’s spot-kicks, with Louis Reed netting the decisive kick to put the Stags through.

The Stags were also missing that of Kyle Knoyle, Jordan Bowery, Aaron Lewis, Regan Hendry, Luke Bolton, Tyler Roberts, and George Maris, Clough putting out a makeshift, starting eleven.

It was the late 1960s when the Stags progressed furthest in the famous old competition, losing 1-0 at home to Leicester City in the quarter-finals of their famous, 1968-69 cup run; since then, they’ve only reached the fourth round twice, and fifth round once, the last being a fourth-round exit in 2008, losing 2-0 at home to Middlesbrough.

Hoping for better luck this season, they’ve seen off both Harrogate Town, and now Accrington Stanley, after battling for a positive result; Accrington had an interval lead in this, second round contest, Everton loanee Isaac Heath getting on the end of a cross from David Love and putting the ball beyond Mason, and into the far corner, inside the opening half hour.

It would be the hosts who’d have the better of the first half, but failed to capitalise, whilst visiting manager, Nigel Clough, made a double change at the start of the second half when bringing on Lucas Akins and Will Evans.

With their seventh successive corner the Stags finally made a breakthrough, in the 53rd minute, Nathan Moriah-Welsh’s ball finding Evans who headed the equaliser past Ollie Wright.

Neither side could fashion another goal, despite the efforts of Rhys Oates and Will Evans, and so to extra-time, and again the hosts took the lead, another cross from Love, and another loanee scoring, this time Chesterfield’s on-loan striker, Paddy Madden, smashing home after Mason failed to keep control of the ball.

At the end of the first half of extra-time, the visiting Stags found themselves back on level terms, another substitute, Dom Dwyer, saw his shot parried by Wright, and Kyle McAdam, who’d replaced Stephen McLaughlin minutes earlier, headed home from close-range.

Penalties beckoned, and it proved to be Mason’s day for the Stags, saving from Joe Bauress, Benn Ward, and Isaac Heath in the shoot-out, to help his side progress in the next round; the

Stags, they saw spot-kicks netted by Lucas Akins, Deji Oshilaja, and Louis Reed, with Clough saying of his keepers heroics afterwards: “They were incredible saves, not run of the mill, and saved the lads having to take their last two.

“Everyone is delighted for him.”

Despite picking a side shorn by injuries of late, Clough added of his teams’ performance that: “We weren’t too bad in the first half although conceded a poor goal.

“But from half-time onwards I though we were good value and gave absolutely everything and I’m delighted we’re through.

“Going into extra-time wasn’t ideal with the players we’ve already got out injured and the players were struggling – a couple more got whacks in the extra-time period too.”

With Mason in the starting eleven, Clough also had four Academy players on the bench, Ollie Taylor coming on for Frazer Blake-Tracy in extra-time, whilst Milla Shore, Jack Goodman, and Jayden Chambers-Morgan also featured.

Mansfield Town: Owen Mason, Deji Oshilaja, Baily Cargill (Lucas Akins 46), Ryan Sweeney, Frazer Blake-Tracy (Ollie Taylor 105), Louis Reed, Jamie McDonnell (Elliott Hewitt 97), Max Dickov (Will Evans 46), Nathan Moriah-Welsh, Rhys Oates (Dom Dwyer 90), Stephen McLaughlin (Kyle McAdam 103).