Emley travelled to the North East for an FA Cup replay following a 1-1 draw at the Fantastic Media Welfare Ground on Sunday and it would prove to be a tight affair as the game was taken to extra time.

Bishop Auckland started the game strongest and certainly looked the most likely in the opening stages, plenty of possession in the Emley half for Bishop Auckland, they looked to prise Emley open however Emley remained compact and limited their output.

The first big chance fell to Bishop Auckland, after loose play from Emley the Bishop Auckland striker found himself bearing down on Ben Bottomley’s goal however his chipped attempt was weak and easily collected, Bishop really had their tails up now and looked to apply continued pressure on the Emley goal, a cross in from the wide right found a Bishops player unmarked on the edge of the box, he turned, however was only able to fire his shot wide of the goal.

It finally looked like Emley were coming into the game, with Diego De Girolamo finding some room on the edge of the box, forcing the keeper into a smart low save, straight down the other end, there was another shooting opportunity for Bishop Auckland, this time firing over from the edge of the area.

The pressure continued from the hosts, almost a carbon copy of a previous chance from the other side a cross would find its way to an unmarked player again, but once again the shot was weak and collected by Bottomley, the chances kept coming for Bishop Auckland, it started with a long ball forward from Emley which was repelled by the on rushing keeper, his long kick would find its way to a Bishop Auckland attacker who would ride a few Emley challenges into the 6 yard box before unleashing a shot which would be heroically blocked by Harry Sheppeard.

It looked like Emley were finally getting some respite before half time however once again there would be another big chance for Bishop Auckland, a cross from the left would eventually make its way to the back post, only for Ben Bottomley to make a point blank save to keep the scores level.

Half Time: Bishop Auckland 0-0 Emley

Emley started the second half the brightest with sustained possession and would win themselves a free kick on the edge of the box, taken by Hayden Lindley, his effort was low and powerful to the keeper's side yet was dealt with well. The game started to dwindle out for a 15 minute period with neither side, causing much trouble for the goalkeepers.

The game was once again brought back to life by another Bishop Auckland opportunity. The ball was worked into a congested middle of the box before somehow falling to a Bishop player, with almost a certain goal it seemed, however, an Emley player threw himself in front of the ball to make another excellent block.

On 79 minutes Emley worked the ball out wide to Joe Stacey, who would bring the ball inside, leaving a defender for dust before riffling his shot just wide of the post.

Emley’s first booking of the evening was for Coban Bird who got there second to a ball on the wide right. The resulting free kick looked dangerous however was cleared well by the Emley defence. Emley had a series of late chances with Hayden Lindley coming closest after good work from Diego De Girolamo, however, he couldn't direct his header towards the goal.

Full Time: Bishop Auckland 0-0 Emley.

As the teams took their positions for extra time, Emley would make their first substitution of the game. Ross Hardaker came on for Coban Bird.

With both teams looking very tired now it was a steady start to the half for both, however the deadlock would finally be broken in the 103rd minute, shouts for a penalty from the Bishop Auckland players would be waved away, Emley then broke down the other end of the field where a sly pass would find Diego De Girolamo who would take it around the keeper before passing across goal for Rinor Ejupi to tap into an empty goal.

Extra Time Half Time: Bishop Auckland 0-1 Emley.

Bishop Auckland looking to respond, a ball from the right was flashed across the Emley box evading both Emley defenders and Bishop Auckland attackers, the ball would find its way out for a Bishops corner which was claimed well by Bottomley.

Emley would then look to the bench again, this time goalscorer Rinor Ejupi would make way for Jessop and Hayden Lindley would make way for Carlos Rodrigues.

With Bishop Auckland looking to apply more and more pressure, they were looking to throw players forward in search of an equaliser, however, this is what Emley would exploit for their second goal, Emley broke down the left hand side through Carlos Rodrigues, his trickery
beat the Bishop Auckland defender before finding Diego De Girolamo in the centre of the box to swipe home into the bottom corner.

With the game coming to a close and Bishop Auckland seemingly frustrated, a long ball was played forward only for a coming together between 2 opposing players,this resulted in a large altercation between the two teams which ended with Burlace receiving a second yellow card for the coming together and a straight red for Norris due to his role in the altercation.

This brought the game to a close, a win that sees The Pewits through to the next round of the FA Cup where they will face Spennymoor Town at home a week on Saturday, but this Saturday will see us make our first ever trip to Gigg Lane to face Bury.

AET-Bishop Auckland 0-2 Emley.

Attendance- 613

Emley- Bottomley, Sheppeard, Bird, Lindley [c], Farrar, Barks, Ejupii, Haswell, De Girolamo, Hanson, Stacey;
Subs all used- Hardaker, Jessop, Rodrigues

Goals- Ejupi (103'), De Girolamo (116')

WM Sykes Man of the Match- Charlie Barks.