All hail the cup kings
Do not be fooled by the score-line, for 1874 Northwich were emphatic winners.
On pretty much every measure, they were better than City of Liverpool.
In a broader context, they have won seven successive matches before lifting the North West Counties League’s Challenge Cup for the first time.
They scored 24 goals along the way, and beat two of the Premier Division’s top three teams.
It is fair to say co-managers Paul Bowyer and Wayne Goodison won’t want their team to be known as, at least not solely, knockout specialists.
However 1874’s record in cup ties since they were appointed two years ago is remarkable: P39 W23 D8 L8 F87 A49
A victory built on tactical courage
City of Liverpool’s firepower is such that their alternative attacker for this final, Jamie McDonald, would be certain to start for every other side in the North West Counties League.
With that in mind, opponents most often set up to try and blunt the Purps’ sharpest weapon.
Perhaps the most impressive part of 1874’s success isn’t the ends, but the means; they denied the newly-crowned champions by starving them of possession.
Bower and Goodison were bold, and trusted their side to play on the front-foot with authority.
It was an approach that worked; the last thing Liverpool, mentally fatigued by how they claimed the title seven days earlier, wanted was to run hard to try and win back the ball.
Becoming harder to beat
1874 had failed to keep a clean-sheet in three successive matches all season before the end of March.
They have now done so twice since.
It would be simplistic to attribute that solely to the arrival of goalkeeper Tony Aghayere, although a tally of eight shut-outs in 17 starts following his transfer is impressive.
City of Liverpool had scored at least once during every game in 2019 before losing 1-0 against Bootle on Easter Monday.
In short, they are not kept at bay often.
It is still an area Northwich need to improve in, a fact acknowledged by co-manager Wayne Goodison afterwards, but with a reliable replacement at last for Greg Hall they can be optimistic of doing so significantly.
In praise of Aaron Smith
If this is to be the final appearance of a brief stopover before he completes an onward journey back to the professional ranks then it will be a memorable one.
The 21-year-old is finding his way once more after getting side-tracked following his release by Nottingham Forest at the end of last season, and 1874 have nudged him back in the right direction.
It is rare for a young player to dominate a game in the way he did this one; nobody had more shots at goal, and his duel with Liverpool goalkeeper Ben Ascroft became the fascinating sub-plot in a wider narrative.
He deserved to be decisive, and was.
What does this mean for 1874’s short-term future
It is dangerous to attach too much significance to a single game.
Momentum can be lost as quickly as it is gained, but a victory against such strong opponents can be galvanizing.
At the very least, it will reassure Northwich players that they can compete with – and outplay – the best teams at this level.
In that respect, it is a symbolic win.
However that should be juxtaposed with the fact that City of Liverpool finished 35 points clear of 1874 in the Premier Division table.
Northwich also drew more games than any other side in the North West Counties League’s top-flight.
An optimist could argue their glass is half full.
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