Stamford AFC beat Grantham Town in the FA Youth Cup

Stamford progressed into the second qualifying round of the FA Youth Cup with a 3-0 victory over local rivals Grantham Town at the Zeeco Stadium on Monday night.

The Young Daniels have enjoyed a fantastic start to the season, winning their opening Northants Youth League game 4-0 at Raunds Town along with continuing a fantastic run in the FA Youth Cup.

Having already come through matches against Lutterworth Town (5-0) and Coalville Town (3-1), the Gingerbreads represented Stamford’s third tie of the competition.

As well as the local rivalry that already exists between the two clubs, it was Grantham that knocked the Young Daniels out of last season’s FA Youth Cup at the preliminary round stage.

That match was also at the Zeeco Stadium - only this time it was the Stamford boys celebrating at the end of the night.

Stamford, led by coaches Paul Walker and Dave Lewis, were on top from the first minute to the last in truth, but squandered numerous chances before the referee awarded a penalty after 35 minutes.

Captain Matty Walker stepped up and sent the goalkeeper the wrong way to give the Young Daniels a well-deserved lead.

The home side continued their dominance in the second half, but a good crowd were beginning to wonder whether Stamford would rue numerous missed chances – hitting the woodwork on several occasions.

Eventually, the Young Daniels doubled their lead after 70 minutes through a thunderous Rohann Boughey free-kick on the edge of the box than any goalkeeper would have struggled to keep out.

With a two-goal cushion, Stamford began to enjoy themselves knowing that the job was all but done.

Late in the game, skipper Walker killed the tie off as he finished off an excellent counter-attack, slotting the ball past the goalkeeper for his second of the game.

It is the first time that a Stamford side has reached the second qualifying round stage of the FA Youth Cup for more than a decade and the hope is that they are not done there, with two rounds remaining before the first round proper.

The Young Daniels await to learn who they will meet in the next round, which will take place on the week commencing Monday, October 2.