Superb goalkeeping display from Biggleswade United RIGHT-BACK secures cup progress

While Biggleswade United, like all football clubs, are quite used to dealing with the occasional dramas they might face, they are normally confined to the pitch or the training ground and don't usually happen before so much as a ball has been kicked.

Until last Tuesday night that is, when two separate road traffic accidents,15 minutes and two miles apart, left them without a goalkeeper for the cup tie.

The first one saw assistant coach Del Digweed and his wife Karen, who runs the bar, miss the match, while down the road, goalkeeper Ollie Leslie and striker Jaiden Irish found themselves stuck in traffic following a separate incident.

With joint head coach, Jordan Wright, getting ready to pull on the gloves and the goalkeeper's jersey, United's right back Jake Stronge told player/coach Gaz Hunt that from the age of seven to 15 he had been at Northampton Town's Academy.....as a goalkeeper!

What followed was a stellar performance which included a string of excellent saves, an assist that led to the equaliser from the penalty spot and the man of the match award.

When Ollie and Jaiden finally made it to the ground late into the second half it allowed Jake to return to the 'day job' in the right back berth for the rest of the game.

This was not the first time that Jake has been called upon to play outside his comfort zone. He joined United at the start of the season as a midfielder/forward and only switched to full-back when injuries left them stretched short in that position, since when he has made it his own.

After the game, Jake said, "When there was talk of Ollie not being here I said I would do a job until he was here which turned out not to be until the 85th minute. So it wasn't a little stint but it wasn't a bad stint either.

"To start with, it all felt a bit new, like dusting off the cobwebs, although I knew the more the team grew into the game the easier it would be for me.

"I think the best save I made was when I was one-on-one with their attacker because we were 1-0 down at the time and making the saving probably kept us in it."

Joint head coach, Gaz Hunt, said about his keeper's performance: "I think he was outstanding. We weren't sure how long Ollie and Jaiden were going to be and it was a choice between the big man (Jordan Wright) or Jake and Jake had a bit of experience of going in goal and he said he was willing to go in.”

And to complete the drama, United would go on to win the game 3-2 following a dramatic last gasp winner that sees them earn a place in the semi-finals of the competition, although Jake was quick to confirm that he now fully intended to return to full-back duties and had no aspirations of making a comeback as a goalkeeper.