UPTON AA went out of the Pyke Cup after conceding twice in two minutes of extra time to lose out to Ellesmere Port Town in their quarter final fixture.

The home side took a 1-0 lead into half-time at the Whitby Sports Club in Ellesmere Port, but Upton came out with a vengeance in the second period.

But, despite scoring once, the visitors also missed a string of chances to put the tie to bed leaving the two sides locked at 1-1 after 90 minutes, taking the game to extra time.

Ellesmere Port then scored twice in two minutes before Upton grabbed a late consolation to set up a tense finale, but the home team held on to seal their place in the semi-finals.

William Conway and Mark Richards were both on target for Upton, but Jamie Easton, Khalid Hawsawi, and Phillip Quilliam scored the goals that won it for Ellesmere Port.

Speaking after the defeat, Upton boss Todd Reid said: “We completely dominated the second half and should have won the game there.

“We played like Upton should. We were busy, got at them, and had chances that we missed. And in the end, we paid the price for missing those chances.

“In extra time we had a two minute spell where we switched off and conceded twice, and that’s what happens when you lose concentration.”

Elsewhere in the Pyke Cup, Cameron Dalton scored twice while Stuart Cornfoot, Peter McShane, and Bradley Williams added another one apiece to help the Division One league leaders South Liverpool to a 5-0 win over Newton (Wirral).

Redgate Rovers also moved in to the last four after they won 5-4 on penalties against Mossley Hill Athletic.

Isaac Jones’ double for Redgate cancelled out strikes from Mossley Hill’s pair of Joe Hornby and Callum Smith to leave the sides level at 2-2 after extra time before the hosts won the shootout.

Ellesmere Port Town, South Liverpool and Redgate Rovers now join Ashville – who beat Chester Nomads last week – in the semi finals of the competition.

In Cheshire Football League action meanwhile, Adam Pownall’s goal for Newton Athletic proved to be no more than a consolation as top of the table Winnington Avenue secured a 3-1 success.

Michael Evans scored twice for the league leaders, while Thomas Sneyd also found the net in the win that leaves Newton six points adrift of Partington Village in second.