By Brian Bennett | Photo: Ian Brodie
He netted in the 4-2 win over Shildon in the last round of the Emirates FA Cup – now Cyril Giraud has done it again after pulling a rabbit out of the hat on Saturday which means Ashington will play Bishop Auckland at Heritage Park on Tuesday night in their preliminary round replay.
The old phrase ‘cometh the hour cometh the man’ sprung to mind as with his side trailing to a strike by Two Blues striker Louis Johnson, it was on the hour when master craftsman Giraud got to work. He equalised with a goal of pure genius, as he wriggled his way through a cluster of defenders before slotting home inside the post.
Afterwards, the 24 year old year said: “I had a couple of players around me but once I got into the one on one situation, I knew I was going to score and I was very happy with the goal.”
Reflecting on the two matches in quick succession against the County Durham side, Giraud who was born in France added: “It’s a bit frustrating because on Tuesday in our league match against them (Bishop Auckland) when we went down 2-1, I thought we played extremely well and didn’t deserve to lose. In the second half, they scored a screamer to equalise and there’s nothing you can do about that then right after, we conceded what proved to be the winner which was a shame.”
He continued: “Today we wanted to make things right. First half we conceded again and didn’t play our best. However in the second half we managed to get back on track, win more headers and second balls and drove forward a lot more. I’m disappointed that we didn’t get the win because we had the chances and deserved to go through – but that’s football.”
The Newcastle-based midfielder went on: “We go again on Tuesday for our third clash against Bishop Auckland in eight days. We lost the league game and have drawn the second – so surely it is our turn to win the third clash.”
Player Sponsorship
At the time of writing, the French Magician is still available for sponsor for the 2024/25 season. Find out more at: https://ashington-afc.square.site/product/player-sponsorship-2024-25/72