Birmingham Senior Cup Final
Villa Park
Wednesday 4th May 2022

Leamington came out on top against old adversaries Stourbridge as they won the Birmingham Senior Cup for the eighth time in an entertaining final at the home of Aston Villa.

Brakes were making their 14th appearance in the final, a figure only bettered by Midlands giants Villa, Birmingham City, Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion, and their victory takes them clear of Kidderminster Harriers and Nuneaton Borough as the most successful non league club in the history of the competition.

Paul Holleran restored his available first choice eleven with the exception of cup tied loan players, who, bar James Mace, had been rested for Monday’s win over Kidderminster Harriers.

Reece Styche fired the first shot of the evening well wide of Jake Weaver’s near post as he attempted to turn Jack Lane inside the Leamington penalty area. Brakes’ opening effort came ten minutes in, Dan Meredith finding Steph Morley twenty yards from goal, his low drive finding the arms of Charlie Price.

The Glassboys had certainly started the brighter, spraying the ball out to the wings and driving at their opponents, but once Leamington had their first chance they began to grow into the game, building purposefully and winning a couple of corners.

They went close when Meredith set up Joe Clarke for a cross that found Jack Edwards, who laid the ball back for Adam Walker to strike first time, the ball zipping just past the upright.

It was from another raid forward that Leamington edged in front on 26 minutes, Devon Kelly Evans receiving the ball in a central position just outside the box, taking a touch past a defender before drilling a fine strike beyond the dive of Price into the back of the net.

Stourbridge looked to have an opening when the ball landed at the feet of Ben O’Hanlon inside the penalty area, but Meredith nipped to dispossess him immediately. They then countered three on three but the cross sailed over the crossbar.

The Glassboys kept coming; Styche breaking into the box on the left, with Weaver producing a fine save as the striker attempted to drive the ball beyond him. Leamington broke quickly from this, and Dan Turner lifted the ball over Charlie Price only for Lee Vaughan to clear the ball away from the goalline.

Stourbridge were capable of counter attacking quickly themselves and broke forward down the right from a Leamington attack, Styche the man on the ball once again, but his driven strike towards the near post was held comfortably by Weaver.

Jack Lane conceded a free kick in a great position for Stourbridge just to the left of the ‘D’, but Darryl Knights curled the ball high over the bar.

Brakes then won a similar effort at the other end, Steph Morley curving his strike just past the post with the last kick of the first half.

Dan Turner and Walker both saw shots blocked in the early stages of the second half as Leamington looked to add an early second goal. Stour forced their first corner of the game but Brakes looked threatening, and Turner saw a shot deflected behind for a corner which came to nothing.

Their next attack proved to be far more clinical however, as Turner pounced on hesitancy from George Forsyth in the Stourbridge defence, rounded Price and slotted into an empty net to double Leamington’s lead.

Brakes were the width of a post from a third goal when Joe Parker tore down the right, trying to find a teammate in the centre with his cross. The Glassboys defence made a hash of trying to clear and Turner nipped in to head towards goal only for the ball to strike the inside of the post and roll along the line before being shovelled clear. Meredith then set off on a driving run down the right before firing just over the bar.

With Leamington in the middle of a four game week it was inevitable that there would be some tired legs out on the Villa Park playing surface, and Joe Clarke was replaced by Callum Gittings with around twenty minutes remaining.

The Stourbridge support erupted with thirteen minutes to go as Styche scored a tremendous goal, executing a superb overhead kick from a right wing corner to leave the closing stages on a knife edge.

Knights bent a shot wide of the far post as they surged forward once more, but Leamington held firm and absorbed the pressure before delivering the killer blow with three minutes remaining. And who better than for it to be James Mace - on his 420th appearance for the club and at the home of the team he supports, as the veteran centre half turned to stab home after Price had spilled the ball.

The remainder of the game was seen out with relative ease, as Under 23 starlets Jack Sang, Manny Olaloko and Josh Beeson, making his debut, were introduced.

There may be one final game to come up at AFC Fylde on Saturday, but this was a perfect way to end what has been a testing season at times, but one which has produced some memorable moments, and this game will certainly rank up there with the best of them.

‘I think for any team going into a season, it’s hard to win trophies - especially when you move into the elite level,’ said Paul Holleran after the game as he soaked up the triumph at the side of the Villa Park playing surface. ‘So for us to win it again, in such an iconic stadium in front of such great followings, it was a special moment.

‘Everybody at the club has worked hard. It’s been tough for us - we’ve had to dig deep at times, so for it to almost finish like this is wonderful.

‘With the schedule we’ve had, the injuries we’ve had, there are lots of players who, if this was a normal game, you wouldn’t have played them tonight. We were limited with choices because of injuries and cup tied players, so the players have had to play through it. I think the performance dipped a little bit but we just ran out of steam; but the will of the likes of James Mace, Steph Morley, Adam Walker, Joe Clarke, Dan Turner - the will of those boys to get the job done is phenomenal.

‘The icing on the cake is Mace getting the third goal. When you think of his journey through COVID - At 35 and he’s done his ACL - There isn’t a sports scientist or a physio in the land that will say ‘you’re going to come back,’ but he’s come back with a bang hasn’t he? And it was fitting for him to get the goal that clinched the win for us. He’s super human!’

Attendance: TBA

Leamington: Jake Weaver, Dan Meredith, Stephan Morley, Joe Clarke (12 Callum Gittings, 69), James Mace, Jack Lane, Joe Parker (15 Jack Sang, 87), Adam Walker (16 Manny Olaloko, 88), Dan Turner (14 Junior English, 84), Jack Edwards, Devon Kelly-Evans (17 Josh Beeson, 90).

Stourbridge: Charlie Price, Lee Vaughan, Ben O’Hanlon (14 Tyler Smith, 64), George Forsyth (15 Elliott Ball, 90), Lathaniel Rowe-Turner, Reece King (16 Harry Lewis, 73), Ethan Moran (20 Daniel Gyasi, 80), James McQuilkin, Reece Styche, Darryl Knights, Jack Wilson.

Subs not used: 12 Demico Burton.

Referee: Mr Tom Reeves

Assistant Referees: Mr Jamie Lunn & Mr Jake Allsopp

Fourth Official: Mr Ashley Clarke

Brakes Man of the Match: Devon Kelly-Evans.