Devonshire Cougars 0

Somerset Trojans 1

Marco Butterfield’s fourth-minute goal was enough to clinch Somerset Trojans a surprise victory over Devonshire Cougars and a place in the FA Cup semi-finals.

The full-back’s looping header from a corner proved to be a rare moment of excitement in a quarter-final short on quality at The Den last night, a replay made necessary by Sunday’s 3-3 draw between the sides at Somerset Cricket Club.

Recently crowned league champions Cougars had 86 minutes to conjure a reply, but for all their huff and puff they were ultimately unable to break down a stubborn Trojans defence.

Towering centre-back Desmond Burgess proved to be the visitors’ key man, winning everything in the air as Cougars resorted to punting the ball long and high as they sought a way back into the game.

Trojans looked the brighter side from the kick-off and were rewarded straight away with Butterfield’s header.

It looked a soft goal to concede, with Butterfield beating a host of defenders to the ball and sending it up and over Ricardo Brangman and into the net.

Cougars struggled to find any fluency in response, and before they had created any real chances, they nearly found themselves two down.

On 29 minutes, lively Trojans striker Dion Stovell showed neat footwork to wriggle clear of a couple of defenders and find himself room to shoot. However, he fired his low drive too close to Brangman, who was able to parry for a corner.

Kwame Steede bustled through for Cougars just after half an hour but was unable to get a clean strike, and for most of the first half the home side were limited to hopeful long shots that rarely troubled keeper Timmy Figureido.

Cougars seemed to be looking to use the uneven bounce to their advantage in the second half, with Brangman bypassing his midfield with a number of hoisted clearances for his forwards to chase.

It was a tactic which appeared to play into the hands of Burgess, who had the height to deal comfortably with most aerial balls.

However, a long ball from Brangman nearly paid off on 52 minutes when both Trojans centre-backs appeared to misjudge an awkward bounce.

The persistent Raymond Beach nipped in and shrugged off a couple of desperate challenges to earn himself a one-on-one against Figureido. But just when it seemed like he had done all the hard work, the forward lost his cool and blazed over, and Cougars’ best chance of the game was gone.

The hosts stepped up the pace as the second half wore on, making three substitutions as they hunted for the elusive equaliser. They won a number of set-pieces in dangerous positions but their final delivery was disappointing.

Trojans’ cause was helped by the eager Stovell, who was happy to chase lost causes on the break to take some of the pressure off his team-mates.

The away side had one major scare two minutes from the end when the ball fizzed across their box in a Cougars attack, but no forward was able to supply the finishing touch.

Devonshire Cougars: R.Brangman, O.Butterfield, D.Cox, I.Mallory (R.Baker, 74 mins), J.DeShields, M.Smith, A.Gibbons, K.Bean (K.Tucker, 85 mins), K.Steede, R.Beach, S.Minors (C.Caisey, 67 mins)

Somerset Trojans T.Figureido, M.Butterfield, J.Tucker, D.Burgess, D.Minors, S.Simmons, J.Butterfield, J.Scott, S.Astwood, D.Stovell, R.Wilson (D.Swan, 77 mins).

Yellow cards: M.Smith, O.Butterfield, A.Gibbons (Cougars); R.Wilson (Trojans)

Referee: Lyndon Raynor