Nailsea travelled to First Division Saltford in the Quarter Finals of the League Cup. As this is the only realistic chance of silverware this season United were keen to impress.
Nailsea could have gone into the lead when after 13 minutes they were awarded a penalty for a push by a Saltford defender. Matt Long took responsibility only for the home keeper to make a good save. Play remained even with the only chances being a Saltford shot into the side netting after 30 minutes and a Matt Long free kick being met by Jim Lee only to fire over the top.
The gulf in class between Premier and First Division clubs was beginning to become evident with Saltford giving away numerous fouls. With 5 minutes to half time a push on Russ Driver gave Nailsea another penalty, this time the kick was taken by James Lee who beat the keeper with a strong shot sent into the roof of the net. The visitors went in at half time with a deserved lead.
The second half started as the first had finished with Nailsea being a yard faster all over the pitch. On 50 minutes a long throw by James Taylor was headed towards goal by James Lee and into the net, only for the linesman to flag for offside. This inexplicable decision only galvanised Nailsea to raise their game further and it was no surprise when on 70 minutes James Lee broke free and coolly lobbed the Saltford keeper giving a two goal cushion to the Premier League side.
Saltford tried to get back into the game and Nailsea had to thank keeper Luke Davies for a smart save to keep their two goal lead intact. The away side introduced young Ben Thorne to replace Kevin Cosham. As Saltford pressed forward they were left exposed at the back and duly paid the price when a revitalised James Lee was again sent through only to be hauled down by a desperate Saltford defender. Lee stepped up for the resultant penalty and beat the keeper for his hat trick.
With the job done James Lee was substituted for Jon Clayton with 5 minutes to go. Clayton nearly added to the Nailsea total when his header was well saved by the home keeper.
Another accomplished performance put Nailsea into the Semi Finals with an emphatic win over a well beaten Saltford side. Back to league action next week with United in a confident mood, looking to continue their rise up the table.
