Colchester United have been beaten 2-1 by Heybridge Swifts in the Essex Senior Cup
After going behind to a ninth minute Jack Adlington-Pile opener in the game played at Scraley Road, the young U's equalised just after half time through Freddie Hinds.
Matt Price got the winner for the Swifts though, heading home a rebound after the initial effort from Evans Kouassi was saved.
The U's put out a team mainly consisting of the U23s, who play in the Professional Development League, but there was also a sprinkling of players with first team experience and it showed as they had the majority of possession and territory.
Swifts have never won the County Cup but did reach the final in 2016 when Jody Brown’s Heybridge lost to Adam Flanagan’s Concord Rangers.
And this win against a U’s side, where Swifts boss Karl Duguid made his name as a player, will have the Black and White Army dreaming again.
Swifts were rewarded for a positive start with a ninth minute opener from the in-form Adlington-Pile.
Matt Price threaded a nice ball through the U’s centre-backs and Adlington-Pile turned inside his marker on the edge of the box before shaping the ball inside the far post with his left in-step. (pictured by Alan Edmonds)
And it was nearly 2-0 two minutes later when Manny Osei-Owsu sent a brilliant curler crashing against the angle of post and bar before Price’s deflected follow-up effort grazed the upright.
But it was the U’s who were on top for the remainder of the half with Dean Ager repeatedly testing the hands of Luca Collins, with the Swifts keeper equal to each shot.
And when Collins was beaten by Ager’s eighteenth minute drive from ten yards, the former Witham number one was happy to see the ball cannon back off the face of the crossbar.
Ager went equally close in the twenty ninth minute when his goal-bound shot was cleared off the line by Swifts skipper Jey Siva, and it remained 1-0 to the hosts at the break.
But it was 1-1 two minutes after the restart, as a good cross from the left was headed home from close-range by Freddie Hinds.
Swifts boss Karl Duguid replaced Jordan Cox with Evans Kouassi midway through the second half – and it proved an inspired substitution.
Kouassi cut inside his marker and unleashed a fierce low drive which forced keeper Callum Coulter to parry, and Price was on-hand to gobble up the chance with a close-range header which proved to be the winner.
Thanks to James Colasanti for the report.