Sheffield & Hallamshire Senior Cup
Louis Axcell hopes Maltby Main can right the wrongs of the past by reaching the Sheffield & Hallamshire Senior Cup Final for the first time since 1978.
Maltby host Andy Dawson’s Parkgate at Muglet Lane tonight, bidding to erase the trauma of shock semi-final defeats in 2015 and 2015.
Maltby lost to James Kitson’s last minute goal for Paul Lines’ Nostell Miners Welfare in 2015 and then to Step 7 side North Gawber in 2019 which is one of the cup’s greatest upsets.
The two games are still fresh in people’s minds at Maltby.
“I wasn’t with the club for the Nostell game which someone told me about on Saturday but I was for the Gawber one,” Axcell told Non League Yorkshire.
“We were shocking on the night and a bit complacent if I’m honest and Gawber turned up and worked their socks off.
“They probably deserved their win on the night.
“It was a mixture of our poor performance and their good performance.
“I think we can learn from that and not have any complacency.
“But we’re going to be at our best to beat a good Parkgate side.
“They’re on a good run and they have some good young players.
“Hopefully we can make amends (for the previous semi-finals) and do ourselves justice on the night.”
Maltby have not appeared in the Senior Cup final since beating Mexborough Town Athletic 2-1 at Belle Vue in 1978 – even Axcell “wasn’t born then”.
If they get through, Axcell says it will be fantastic for the club.
“It is good for morale of any club is getting to finals and I know some people say ‘we don’t take that cup seriously’,” he said.
“But locally is it is a bit of local pride, the final is always at a league ground so that’s a bit of encouragement for some of the lads.
“Take no bones out of it, it is a big game (tonight).
“Any semi-final is big at any level.
“It would be good for the club (to progress), especially for the players, volunteers to get to a final and have a good go at trying to win some silverware.”