Late heartbreak as the Stags’ fairytale FA Cup run comes to an end

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Mansfield Town gave it their all but the Championship quality of Middlesbrough shone through as they knocked the Amber and Blues out of the FA Cup.

The visitors started the game brightly and stormed into a 2-0 lead within the first 15 minutes of the game.

Boro’s first goal came in the fourth minute through Uche Ikpeazu, with Stephen McLaughlin misjudging his header which allowed the forward to get on the ball, run goalwards and fire his effort into the top corner of Nathan Bishop’s goal.

Chris Wilder’s side doubled their advantage just 10 minutes later as poor defending from the hosts allowed Joe Gibson to feed Middlesbrough new-boy Caolan Boyd-Munce who slotted the ball in from close range.

Stags did not let those two goals affect them as they continued to play their game and frequently attacked Joe Lumley’s goal.

Mansfield were finally able to hit the back of the net after Oli Hawkins’ powerful header beat the Boro goalkeeper to halve the deficit.

The comeback was complete with only five minutes to go as Jason Law’s inch-perfect ball found the on-rushing Rhys Oates who rounded Lumley and drew the game level at 2-2.

Unfortunately for Mansfield, Isaiah Jones’ cross was turned into his own goal by John-Joe O’Toole as the Stags were defeated 3-2 and bowed out of the FA Cup.

Nigel Clough’s side were somewhat back to full strength with Farrend Rawson the only absentee due to illness. Clough, who hails from the North East himself, fielded a strong starting 11 which saw the return of Ollie Clarke and Stephen Quinn into the side. The duo started in a midfield diamond alongside George Maris and Ryan Stirk.

Behind them, the defence consisted of Bishop in goal and a back four of McLaughlin at left-back, Hawkins and  O’Toole as the two centre-backs and Elliott Hewitt at right-back. The forward line consisted of Oates and Jordan Bowery with Danny Johnson finally returning to the substitutes bench after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Stags started brightly and had a chance in the second minute as skipper Clarke passed the ball into Stirk but his effort was off target.

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Moments later, Middlesbrough were in front after a stunner from Ikpeazu. The forward brushed off challenges from Hawkins and McLaughlin and steamed forward before releasing a stunning effort that flew into the top corner.

Mansfield responded well after going 1-0 down as Quinn released a vicious shot from outside of the box, however, it narrowly missed the target and flew over the bar.

Disaster struck then as Gibson walked through the defence and cut the ball back to new signing Boyd-Munce, who opened his account for Middlesbrough with a debut goal.

A string of saves from Bishop to deny Josh Coburn and Ikpeazu kept the Stags in the game as the hosts began to dominate in the latter stages of the first half.

The Amber and Blues’ biggest opportunity in the first 45 minutes came from a counter-attack. Maris lead the charge with Clarke and Bowery on either side of him, although, the midfielder opted to shoot rather than play it into a teammate.

In the second half, Mansfield continued their relentless pressure and looked to find a way through an Oates effort in the 53rd minute cleared off the line.

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Stags finally got their deserved goal when Quinn’s delivery found the rising Hawkins, who nodded the ball past Lumley to give the home support a glimmer of belief.

It should have been 2-2 with 10 minutes to go as Johnson pounced on a loose ball and slotted it into an empty net, but the linesmen adjudged him offside with the hosts still a goal down heading into the dying embers of the game.

That equaliser eventually came in the 85th minute as Law’s through ball found Oates, who rounded the Middlesbrough ‘keeper and slotted the ball in to send the Mansfield faithful mental.

After that equaliser, the tide flipped once again as Boro threw the kitchen sink to avoid another 30 minutes and were rewarded in the fifth minute of added time.

Jones’ bursting run down the wing saw him deliver a low cross into the danger area. O’Toole, who was sliding in to clear it, tapped the ball into the back of his own net and ended Stags’ FA Cup run.

It must be said, however, that the defeat was not a fair result based on the sheer amount of determination the Mansfield players showed throughout the 90 minutes.

Clough’s side will now be able to focus solely on the league and begin their promotion push against Swindon Town on Tuesday evening.

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