By Martin Walker
Newton Aycliffe chairman Gary Farley has congratulated West Auckland and Dunston after they set up a mouthwatering all-Northern League FA Vase Final.
County Durham side West will face Northern League rivals Dunston in the Wembley final on Sunday May 13.
West, formerly managed by Aycliffe boss Allan Oliver, came from a goal behind to beat Herne Bay in their second-leg semi-final on Saturday.
Gateshead side Dunston drew 2-2 with Staveley MW to win 3-2 on aggregate and set up an eagerly-awaited London final.
Aycliffe chairman Farley congratulated both sides, and looks forward to what will be a proud occasion for the Northern League.
“It just shows how strong the Northern League is at this level of the football pyramid system,” said Farley.
“We congratulate both sides on what is a tremendous achievement in getting to the final in the first place.
“It will be a fantastic day out for both sides, and I’m sure there’ll be a lot of football fans from the North-East making the trip down on Sunday May 13.”
West Auckland fell behind in the first eight minutes when a free kick into their area was met with a thundering drive from Herne Bay left back Tom Bryant.
The home team pulled level in the 32nd minute through striker Michael Rae, who had put West ahead in the first leg in Kent last week, which finished 2-2.
Rae found himself in a one on one situation with Herne Bay’s goalkeeper, but the Number 10 kept his composure and rolled the ball into the net.
And five minutes later Rae bagged his and West Auckland’s second of the game, latching onto a neat reverse pass from his strike partner and team captain Mattie Moffat and again sliding the ball into the bottom left corner of the net.
Rae could have had a hat-trick in first half stoppage time but his header thudded off the post.
Herne Bay were also frustrated by the woodwork minutes into the second half when the ball bounced off the underside of the bar following a run and shot.
The home fans had to endure six tense minutes of stoppage time at the end of the second half, but when the referee finally blew the whistle they got their chance to take to the field, as supporters young and old charged onto the pitch to hug and hail the West Auckland heroes.
Goalscorer Rae was dowsed with a bucket of ice and water and for 20 minutes the Darlington Road field was stampeded by jubilant fans, the ground reverberating with chants of “West Auckland are Wonderful” and “We’re going to Wembley”.
Former Bishop Auckland MP Derek Foster was one of the estimated 1,800 crowd.
He told the Northern Echo: “This is an excellent occasion for West Auckland and will go down in the club’s history along with their winning of the first World Cup in 1909.
“To show how significant this is, even my wife has said she will go to Wembley to watch them in the final.”
After the 2-2 draw at Herne bay, West Auckland 2-1 victory at home saw them win the semi-final 4-3 on aggregate.
Their Northern League Division One rivals Dunston took a 1-0 lead from the first leg to Derbyshire today.
Staveley took the lead in the sixth minutes of today’s second leg, but Dunston equalised nine minutes later.
The Derbyshire side took the lead for a second time but in the 85th minute, Dunston equalised again setting up the North-East Wembley clash.
