FA Cup: Chorley, Barnet and Solihull Moors upset EFL sides as underdogs continue to shine

It was another day for the underdogs as non-league Solihull Moors, Barnet and Chorley all tamed English Football League opposition to put themselves in the hat for Monday's FA Cup second-round draw.

National League North side Chorley beat local rivals Wigan Athletic to progress to round two for the first time in 30 years, and only the third time in their history.

Connor Hall netted the winner in extra time with the scores tied at 2-2 in normal time, taking advantage of Adam Long's first-half dismissal.

"It's amazing for this group of players to do it," Chorley boss Jamie Vermiglio told BBC Radio Lancashire. "It's a newly collected group, so it's good for them to achieve this and believe in themselves.

"They're singing the team song in the dressing room now and the camaraderie can only grow from here. To get to the second round proper in the FA Cup, who knows what else we can do?"

National League side Barnet beat League One Burton - two tiers above them - despite being reduced to 10 men for the entire second half, with Wesley Fonguck's winner coming before Matt Preston's dismissal just before half-time.

"We've asked for and shown great character after going down to 10 men against a team two leagues above us," said manager Peter Beadle.

"The boys hung in there, they put their bodies on the line and we got our rewards."

For Solihull, planning how to topple an EFL side proved more complicated given Scunthorpe had not played for a fortnight after players tested positive for Covid-19.

"We didn't know what they were going to have available," said Moors boss Jimmy Shan after the National League side upset their League Two hosts 3-2. "But we held our own and won the game."

Scunthorpe manager Neil Cox admitted he was "surprised by how good" his side played in the circumstances, even against a non-league side, but their lack of game time ultimately showed.

• Saturday's big stories from the FA Cup first round

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• All the match reports on our FA Cup fixtures page

Heartbreak for Hayes, Torquay twice blow two-goal lead in thriller

It will take a long time for the players, staff and fans of Torquay United and Hayes & Yeading to fathom how they failed to add their names to this weekend's list of FA Cup shocks.

After a scoreless 90 minutes, Southern League Premier South side Hayes looked certain to knock out League Two side Carlisle as Amos Nasha's fierce strike put them 2-0 up three minutes into the second period of extra time.

Jon Mellish's goal with two minutes left appeared a mere consolation, only for the defender to pop up again with a last-gasp equaliser to send the tie to penalties.

The drama continued in the shootout with Carlisle's Josh Kayode seeing his match-winning spot-kick saved before team-mate Gavin Reilly spared his blushes with a sudden-death winner after Hayes captain Liam McDevitt's miss.

Down in Devon, logic took the afternoon off as Torquay and Crawley traded 11 goals - eight of them after the 90-minute mark - in a tie for which the term rollercoaster doesn't quite do it justice.

Gary Johnson's Torquay, of the National League, looked well set to unseat their League Two opponents, leading 2-0 with eight minutes left before Tom Nichols pulled one back from the spot.

The real mayhem began in 20 minutes of stoppage time, following an injury to Crawley keeper Tom McGill, as Josh Umerah put the Gulls back in front in the 108th minute after Max Watters' equaliser, only for Jordan Tunnicliffe to level at 3-3 in the 21st minute of time added on.

Remarkably, that was not the end of the excitement. Asa Hall twice stepped up from the spot to put the hosts 5-3 up with 13 minutes of extra time left, yet there was still time left for Nichols to complete an improbable hat-trick with a quickfire double, before Ashley Nadesan gave the Red Devils the lead for the first time.

Going against the spirit of the day, Town held out for the most remarkable 6-5 win.

What else happened on Sunday?

Two sides from the eighth tier of the football pyramid were edged out in their attempts to reach round two.

Maldon and Tiptree, of the Isthmian League North Division, faced a Morecambe side 82 places above them and lost to Adam Phillips' penalty shortly before half-time.

The wonderfully named Cray Valley Paper Mills from Eltham in the London Borough of Greenwich, who play in the Isthmian League South East Division, went down to Bedsente Gomis' header for Havant & Waterlooville.

The Millers, who were making their debut appearance in the first round proper, almost forced extra time but Matty Warren was denied by the post.

Eastbourne Borough of the National League South were seeking a place in round two for the first time but were swept aside in the second half by League One Blackpool, Gary Madine scoring twice in a 3-0 win on the south coast.

Hampton and Richmond Borough, also of the National League South, had hope of an upset against Oldham of League One but couldn't find a late equaliser as Harry Kewell's side progressed 3-2.

There was also no upset for Eastleigh of the National League, who spurned two excellent chances as their tie against League One Milton Keynes finished 0-0, before Scott Fraser scored the decisive penalty in the shootout.

A whole weekend of surprises

Just as Sunday produced new chapters for the FA Cup's history books, Saturday's first-round fixtures also featured a generous serving of giant-killings.

Six EFL sides were eliminated by non-league opposition, including eighth-tier Marine, who knocked out League Two side Colchester United on penalties.

Boreham Wood beat struggling League Two side Southend United, also on penalties, while Darlington stunned managerless League One outfit Swindon Town.

Fifth-tier sides King's Lynn Town and Dagenham & Redbridge left it late to beat Port Vale and Grimsby Town respectively, while Stockport County defeated League One Rochdale.

National League North side Brackley Town also progressed, seeing off Bishop's Stortford on penalties and eighth-tier Canvey Island beat Banbury United.

Combined with Sunday's results, it means 12 non-league clubs made it through to the second round, continuing the magic of the oldest knockout competition in the world.

• Watch all of the latest FA Cup highlights and reaction here