Len Mahoney Cup Final

WEYLINE 2

DUKE OF ALBANY 2

(Duke won 4-3 on penalties)

WEYLINE’S treble hopes fell at the final hurdle after Duke of Albany snatched the Len Mahoney Cup on penalties at Grove Corner.

The Weymouth Sunday League Premiership champions and Sunday Intermediate Cup holders were odds on to complete the historic feat but the Duke rose to the occasion and held their nerve to run out deserved winners.

Albany stopper Neil Innes denied Lee Pattison early on before the game finally sparked to life on 34 minutes when Weyline’s leading scorer Danny Andrews appeared to be pulled back in the box.

Referee Brian Parsons did not have a clear view of the incident but after consulting his assistant, he eventually awarded a penalty, allowing Andrews to smash home his 100th goal for the club for a 1-0 half-time lead.

Lee Thompson and Adam Schofield then replaced Pattison and Nigel Evans at the break as Weyline looked to build on their lead, but the second half was cagey throughout with very few incidents at either end.

With just 15 minutes remaining, James Aldom then came on for Sean Stewart and the switch nearly paid dividends moments later when the substitute set up Andrews, whose weak shot was well head by the in-form Innes.

Despite that miss, it appeared Weyline had done enough but in the closing seconds the Duke’s persistence paid off when Dean Williams headed in a dramatic equaliser to take the game to extra-time.

All the momentum was now with Albany and when Lewis Espie handed them the lead with a wonder strike from 25 yards, it looked like Weyline were down and out, particularly when Arron McDonald saw red for a trip moments later.

However, the double winners ref-used to lie down and within minutes of the second half of extra-time they were back level.

Thompson and Aldom both went close before a goalmouth scramble saw Schofield slide in the loose ball from eight yards to the delight of the Weyline bench.

The treble-chasers then nearly went on to win it when Dan McDonald’s cross picked out Ethan Devaney, but his 12-yard shot went straight into the arms of the grateful Innes.

With 120 minutes of football unable to separate the two sides, the encounter moved on to a penalty shoot-out and once again Innes proved the major obstacle for Weyline as he saved efforts from Devaney and Dan McDonald before Williams netted the winning kick to send the Duke into euphoria.

Earlier in the day, Britannia triumphed 1-0 against fellow islanders Portland Town Lions in the Les Hallett Trophy final.

The winning goal came from a first-half penalty from Stu Burley but the Championship outfit acquitted themselves well against their higher-league opponents.

Commenting on the both finals, Weymouth Sunday League spokesman Andy Lowe said: “It was a great day with two very close-fought games that could have gone either way. The fact we also raised £550 for the Dorset Prosthetic Centre in honour of Gary Allen was tremendous.

“On behalf of the league and all its players, I would like to say a huge thank you to Portland United FC and in particular Robin Satherley and Matt and his bar staff, for hosting such a great day.

* Weyline ended their league campaign with a 9-2 victory over Rendezvous at Redlands. Danny Andrews (3), Sean Stewart (3), Dan McDonald, Lee Pattison and Liam Miles did the damage while Ricky Lane (2) replied for the Vous.