Dagenham & Redbridge bowed out of the FA Cup after being defeated by Premiership opposition for the second successive season at Victoria Road. Once again though, the top flight opposition will know that they have been in a game.
The Daggers started fast, once again tearing in to their opponents right from the start. They forced 5 corners in the first ten minutes and had the Ipswich defence firmly on the back foot as could be seen when Hreidarsson sliced an attempted clearance
almost into his own net. After 18 minutes they deservedly took the lead, Jermaine Wright tackling Danny Hayzelden
(above) but only diverting the ball to Junior McDougald (right) who calmly beat Ipswich keeper Marshall to send the home fans wild.
Ipswich refused to panic though and began to get back into the game beginning to put the Daggers back four under some pressure and open up some space. After 31 minutes the visitors were level, Martijn Reuser finding all sorts of space on the Daggers right and crossing to find Argentine Sixto Peralta whose header went in off Tony Roberts left hand post.
The game became one way traffic for a while and Reuser had a shot blocked by Paul Terry when it seemed he must score before Ipswich eventually did take the lead just on the stroke of half time. Marcus Bent chested down a ball and Jim Magilton picked his spot with a great shot from the edge of the area with Tony Roberts only able to admire it.
Just when it looked like the Daggers bubble may have been firmly burst though, Mark Janney
(left) found himself with space in the Ipswich box and should have scored, but dragged his shot just wide to leave the Daggers trailing at half time.
Tony Roberts was forced into a save early in the second half saving with his legs from Magilton, but the Daggers pressed forward looking for an equaliser and Lee Goodwin
(right) headed over from Hayzelden's corner when he really should have hit the target. This left gaps at the back though and Ipswich always looked capable of grabbing another goal. This duly came when Peralta scored again in the 67th minute from another Reuser cross.
Even after this McDougald had a good shout for a penalty turned down as the home side refused to give in, but it wasn't to be and Marcus Stewart, in his first game back from a broken jaw, ran clear to score Ipswich's 4th in the 81st minute to end the game as any kind of a contest.
So it was the result that the head had suggested rather than the one the heart had wished for, and Ipswich Town fans can be proud of the way their team coped with a tricky no-win situation on the day. Daggers fans can be proud too of the efforts of their team who can now go back to concentrating on the more important matter of gaining promotion to the Football League having pocketed over £300,000 in prize and TV money from the FA Cup run.
Meanwhile, Boston United's Nationwide Conference game at Doncaster Rovers was a victim of the cold weather so the situation in the league stays as it was. That will no doubt give Garry Hill a cause to smile this evening.
It will be interesting to see how the Daggers approach the FA Trophy game against Eastbourne Borough next Saturday, a game that poses the converse problem to today with the Daggers firm favourites to win against a team two divisions below them.
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