It was Inaugural Oxfordshire Trophy final at the ASM Stadium on Tuesday night with Thame United A meeting Kidlington A to battle it out in the new competition aimed at clubs with multiple teams in order to allow them to compete in a county cup. Both teams play their football in Division one of the Oxfordshire Senior League. The table would suggest this could have been a one sided match with Thame thirty points above Kidlington in third place with Kidlington third from bottom.

The game got under way with Thame kicking from left to right towards the ring road end, but against the odds it was the visitors that showed the greater urgency in the opening period in defence they were much stronger than the home side and stopped any attack while up front they looked dangerous with the pace of the number 9 and 11 causing the Thame defence a number of problems. And it was no surprise when Kidlington took the early lead, The Kidlington number 7 played the ball to the number 9 from the centre circle he played the ball back for the player to pick the ball up on the left and run in on goal and chip the advancing keeper. A second goal was coming as the visitors looked dangerous on the counter attack and on 19 minutes it was two, a root one ball straight down the middle of the Thame defence saw the pacy number 11 run on and pick the ball up take it into the area and fire a right footed shot info the left hand post. It was a very one sided half with Thame only forcing one save out of the Kidlington keeper and Kidlington looking nothing like the team that had only won three games all season, in the league.

The second half started and it was more of the same the visitors looking more dangerous in the final third and solid in defence and went further in front this time it was the pace of the number 11 again who picked up the ball on the left ran in on goal and slotted past the Thame Keeper, At that point the home side looked down and out and had nothing to answer the pace and power of the visitors, and it got worse when Thame were reduced to ten men after getting a player sent off for kicking out, as the clocked ticked into the final few minutes everyone was expecting Kidlington to be crowned the champions. Then with two minutes to go the home side pulled a goal back, after winning a free kick in their own half the ball was played into the Kidlington penalty area where James Bonwick rose to loop a header over the Kidlington keeper. The home side had finally woken up and continued to press the visitors goal deep into injury time, and with 99 minutes on the clock Thame got another, this time a long ball was launched into the visitors box it was headed out and fell to substitute Adam Williams with first time right foot shot from the edge the box the ball flew into the right hand top corner. There was real nervousness in the Kidlington team and Thame sensed that and pushed forward again and with time nearly up scored an equaliser. Thame had won a throw in on the left hand side by the corner flag, the ball was launched long into the penalty area it got a touch at the near post which took the ball across the goal and found full back Max Cowling running in at the back post to knock the ball into the net, there was wild celebrations from the Thame players and fans, while Kidlington looked distraught, there was just time for kick off before the referee signalled the end of the match and penalties beckoned.

It was Kidlington who stepped up to take the first kick, Thame equalised, the next two penalties for both sides were scored. Thames third penalty was missed as it hit the crossbar, Kidlington missed their fourth as the ball hit the left hand post, the scores were level 3 - 3 as we went into the fifth round, Kidlington's penalty was saved by keeper Starkey, diving to his left with Max Cowling who had scored the equaliser stepped up and placed the ball to the left of the keeper to win the penalty shoot out four goals to three and remarkably Thame had come back from the dead to lift the Trophy, there were wild scenes with the Thame players and management celebrating wildly as they were presented with the trophy. It was a great advert for the new competition six goals and a penalty shoot out

Goals
James Bonwick 88 minutes
Adam Williams 99 minutes
Max Cowling 101 minutes

Starting Eleven
1 Dan Starkey (GK)
2 Tom Lankaster
3 Max Cowling
4 Tom Gibbons
5 James Carr
6 James Hickling (C)
7 Iheanyi Ejimofar
8 Kareem Sulaiman
9 Ryan Binnee
10Josh Russell
11 James Bonwick

Substitutes
12 Jaden Sandiford
14 Luke Hurley
15 Adam Williams
16 ashy Price
17 Nathan Brownsword