Millers through to next round of Cup

Rotherham United made it a first win in the FA Cup since 2001 - but, boy, did they have to fight hard against Ishmian League side Wealdstone.

Both sides took a while to get into the game with the first twenty minutes being full of little fouls, kicks and pushes. The Millers` first corner came on eighteen minutes and it was swung in by Kevin Ellison who found skipper Ian Sharps. Sharps` shot was put out for a corner by Chris O`Leary. Nicky Law got a shot in but it was blocked by Lee Chappell. On twenty-four minutes, Mark E`Beyer had a shot for the Stones but Andy Warrington saved easily, with Warrington again saving two minutes later from a Chappell free kick. At the other end, Adam Le Fondre`s shot was put behind by 'keeper Sean Thomas and from the resulting corner Thomas saved from Nicky Law. The first goal came on the half hour mark when Thomas took too long on a back pass from James Gray and with Le Fondre rushing in at him, his kick hit the Millers` striker and went into the back of the net. And the Millers could have been three up in the next three minutes when a shot from Le Fondre went wide and Pablo Mills` shot, from outside the box, went just wide of the right-hand upright. But the Millers did double their lead before half-time with a fantastic shot from Kevin Ellison from twenty-five yards out.

The second half began with Paul Warne replacing Nicky Law, who received treatment during the first half. The first shot of the half came from E`Beyer but Nick Fenton got in the way of it and from the resulting corner, Warrington pushed Chappell`s shot round the post. Eleven minutes in and Ian Sharps got the ball from an Ellison corner but his header went just over the bar. On sixty-two minutes, the home side got themselves back into the game when Ryan Ashe fired home from just outside the box. It was all back to the walls for the Millers after that with Wealdstone looking for an equaliser. But, Drewe Broughton put the visitor`s three-one up on eighty-one minutes with a goal that he fully deserved. But Wealdstone weren`t going to let this one go without a fight and Danny Spendlove, on for Ellerbeck, gets the ball to Ashe who gets his, and the Stones`, second of the game when he put the ball into the top corner of the net from inside the penalty area. Millers` fans fingernails were being bitten now especially when a minute after the goal, Warrington had to bring off a save from Ashe. But, it wasn`t to be for the non-league side and it`s the Millers who face either Luton or Rochdale in the next round at Don Valley.

It sounds like Wealdstone put up a good fight against the Millers and that our defence was left wanting for parts of the game.

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