Wroxham overcame Dereham Town to be crowned the Norfolk Senior Cup Champions on Tuesday night after a fantastic game consisting of five goals, three of which came in extra time.

Goals from Luke Tuttle and Toby Hilliard were ultimately not enough to cancel out the Jamie Forshaw hat-trick that saw the Yachtsmen take home the silverware.

Dereham looked the more comfortable of the two teams in the first half, especially when in possession of the ball. Ryan Hawkins looked bright, harassing the Wroxham defence from the start and Michael Clunan looked a class act when on the ball, consistently creating from deep.

Though Dereham had the better possession and looked in control, it was arguably Wroxham who had the clearer chances and failed to capitalise, with player of the match Forshaw having a couple of disappointingly tame shots as well as steering a diving header straight into the arms of Dereham keeper Andrew Wilton.

Wilton was called into action a few times in the first half, once again due to the tenacious Forshaw who always looked like the Wroxham player that was going to make something happen.

Dereham however would shade the first half on quality of play and overall possession, the Magpies simply lacked a final ball. When opportunities came, they snatched at and wasted them; a prime example being Tuttle slicing high and wide when the path to goal opened up in front of him.

It was however Tuttle who broke the deadlock 20 minutes into the second half when Dereham were awarded a penalty. The number ten stepped up and saw his initial shot impressively saved by Elliot Pride, however he was first in line to stab the rebound home through the Wroxham keeper’s legs.

Dereham could have doubled their advantage only three minutes later when Adam Smith hit a great shot from the far right only to see it bounce off the woodwork, Ryan Hawkins was waiting in anticipation for a rebound but was helpless as the ball travelled out for a goal kick.

Wroxham rallied and built some momentum after what appeared to be a wake-up call. The Yachtsmen seemed to have a realisation that despite soaking up a lot of pressure, they still only needed a goal to take this game further.

They pushed and pushed, yet it seemed as though the Magpies were well and truly on the home straight, the defensive line looked resilient and solid while they still posed a threat on the counter.

However when, due to many injuries throughout the second period of the game, the fourth official declared that there were no less than seven minutes of added time to play, Wroxham sensed their chance to snatch a goal.

In the 96th minute the Yachtsmen won a corner, for which goalkeeper Pride made his way to the box. A poor clearance set the ball up for Pride to strike a brilliant half volley that looked destined to nestle in the left corner of the goal, had it not been for the Magpies Captain Oliver Willis who made a goal line clearance; which was then adjudged to have been a save with his right arm.

Willis received a red card and Jamie Forshaw smashed the penalty straight down to the middle to send the game in to extra time.

Dereham faced an uphill battle in extra time, with tired legs exaggerated by being down a man. Wilton once again kept his side in the game with a fantastic low diving save to deny Forshaw after he managed to get an accurate strike away.

Despite the number difference the Magpies still managed to create chances and could have gone ahead in extra time when a fantastic long range strike from Hawkins didn’t quite dip low enough, rattled off the underside of the cross bar and bounced off the goal line with Pride only able to watch.

It was Wroxham who took their chance though and it was Forshaw who was on target just before the break of extra time.

A Wroxham cross was lofted into the danger area and landed perfectly in between the two defenders that sandwiched Remi Gordon. The winger managed to bring the ball down and selflessly set back to Forshaw who drilled the ball through the crowd and into the back of the net.

The final fifteen of the game contained yet more unexpected twists and turns when Dereham found themselves gifted a lifeline to get back into contention for the trophy.

A long ball over the top seemed easy enough for the Wroxham back line to deal with, until a breakdown in communication resulted in Pride and Captain Andy Howell colliding with neither getting any purchase on the ball. Substitute Toby Hilliard was rewarded for his tireless pressing with an empty net to tap into and give the Magpies the hope of silverware once again.

Over the course of the game it was arguable as to who was on top, with Dereham having better possession and play in the first ninety, but Wroxham arguably having the better chances in which they failed to capitalise. The opposite could be said for extra time with the Yachtsmen having more of the play and looking the more dangerous, yet the Magpies hit the woodwork and continued to pose a threat on the counter despite being down a man.

It was too close to call and all present at Carrow Road were expecting penalties to be the way in which the cup final was decided.

Nevertheless, similar to the way in which the final minutes of normal time played out, it was Wroxham heaping on the pressure looking for a winner and once again there was late drama.

With only one minute of extra time remaining Wroxham piled into the Dereham box looking to create something, substitute Kyle Baker received the ball just inside the box, took a touch out of his feet and looked to deliver a final ball when Dereham’s Smith put in a studs up challenge. Wroxham were awarded the penalty, Smith given a yellow card and Forshaw stepped up once again.

The forward had squandered a few chances from open play on the night yet could not be faulted for his composure from the spot, sending Wilton the wrong way and firing home into the bottom left corner.

A deflated Dereham attempted to muster some magic in the one minute of added time, yet it was to no avail for the ten men who can hold their heads high for their efforts, particularly in extra time.

Both teams put in a fantastic performance in what was the most entertaining and exciting cup final of the season so far. But it was Wroxham and the composure of Man of the Match Jamie Forshaw that snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, resulting in the Yachtsmen being crowned Norfolk Senior Cup Champions.

Final Score: Dereham Town 1-1 Wroxham (2-3 AET)

Line Ups

Dereham Town: Andrew Wilton, Oliver Willis (C), Frazer Blake-Tracy, Michael Clunan, Harry Barker, Daniel Morphew, Ryan Hawkins, Adam Smith, Liam Wales, Luke Tuttle & Sam Borrer.

Subs: Toby Hilliard, Matt Howard, Aaron Kay, Louis Mason, Lewis Sturman.

Wroxham: Elliot Pride, Steve Taylor, Ben Price, David Hinto, Andy Howell (C), Matt Halliday, Jack Garrod, Danny White, Nathan Stone, Jamie Forshaw & Remy Gordon.

Subs: Kyle Baker, Danny Rust, Jordan King, Jack Guyton, Payton Swatman.

Referee: James Turner

Assistant Referees: Ahmed Mohamed

Fourth Official: David Jewell

Player of the Match: Jamie Forshaw

Att: 962