LATE DRAMA SEALS VALLEY CUP VICTORY

Photo: Martin Pulley

Defender Delroy Gordon brings the ball down before scrambling home an late equaliser allowing Rugby to go on to seal the win

Town were involved in their second five goal affair of the week, this time coming out on top - thanks to a dramatic late strike from Steve Evans in the penultimate minute of extra time.

Evans's 119th minute goal ended a poor run of form for the Valley in this peripheral competition, and secured the club a second round visit to Conference North side Solihull Moors in the process.

New boss Tony Dobson had used the game the have a first proper look at a number of players, making five changes to his starting line-up from the weekend's defeat at Oxford.

This gave a first start of the season to Ed Ryan and the returning-from-injury Jason Taylor. Dave Clarke kept his place in goal, and there were also second games for recent arrivals Scott Musgrove and Danny Williams.

The first half was a relatively uneventful, dreary spectacle. The Valley's best chance fell to Williams on 18 minutes, but he could only blaze the ball well wide of the goal after he had burst through down the left channel.

For Racing, Martin Crawford was similarly off-target shortly after, before Linton Bailey opened the scoring on 24 minutes when he headed home the diminutive Martin Stevin's corner.

Rugby emerged for the second half a more determined and potent outfit, with the introduction of Neil King after the interval, and David Kolodynski just past the hour mark having a positive impact on their play.

As had been the case at the weekend though, at first they failed to reap the reward for their pressure and dominance. Their best chances early in the half saw Rory Curtis screw his shot across the face of the goal after Taylor's neat flick had released him, and Craig Herbert head Steve Purton's corner over the bar.

On 69 minutes the Purton-Herbert combination did come up trumps though, with the Town skipper heading home for the second successive match.

Kolodynski's low shot struck the post a minute later, before the plucky Midland Alliance opposition launched a mini-fightback - with Tom Wilmore firing two shots at a previously untroubled Clarke.

When Clarke could only apply a one-handed parry to a third Wilmore effort on 80 minutes, Warwick striker Jason Ramsey - who had been a handful all evening - was on hand to tap home the rebound to the delight of the visiting bench, which included one-time Town Reserve Team manager Mark Shackleton.

Delroy Gordon made things all-square again when he managed to bundle the ball past Dave Rimmer from a ridiculously acute angle, and King could have sealed the tie in the final minute of normal time when he blazed over with the goal at his mercy after another incisive foray down the left from Purton.

With legs from both sides beginning to tire and the game looking to be heading for a penalty shoot off decider, Evans broke from deep before striking a glorious effort from 20 yards past the hapless Rimmer to provide Valley with a much-needed confidence boost ahead of their important weekend FA Cup tie against Long Eaton.

Valley Line-up: Clarke, Gordon, Purton, Musgrove (King), Herbert, Commander, Edge, Ryan, Taylor (Kolodynski), Curtis, Williams (Evans). Subs not used: Gearing, Stevens. Booked: None. Sent off: None.

RC Warwick Line-up: TBC Subs not used: TBC

Report by Jon Venner.