Boston United 1-2 Doncaster Rovers (2005)

Boston United 1-2 Doncaster Rovers

FA Cup Second Round

Sunday 4th December 2005

Dave Mulligan was involved in some of the best periods in Doncaster Rovers' history.

From being a Division Three title winner in 2003/04 to scoring a sublime goal on a freezing night at Hull City's KC Stadium the following campaign, or being a member of the side which surprised everyone in the Carling Cup in 2005/06, he was someone who played his part in Rovers' resurgence.

In total, he made 88 appearances for the club, but it was this game against Boston United on a cold afternoon at York Street where he produced his best moments in a DRFC shirt - a performance which was also good enough to see him rewarded with tickets for that season's FA Cup Final.

Mulligan celebrates one of his two goals. (Photo: Unknown).

At the time, Rovers were very much riding on the crest of a wave. Confidence was sky high and everyone in the town was exceptionally proud of their local team with the previous game having been the famous 3-0 hammering of Aston Villa in the Carling Cup. 

It was a truly vintage era and the FA Cup offered another opportunity for a cup run with only Boston United (then in League Two and managed by a certain 'larger than life' Steve Evans) standing between Rovers and a place in the Third Round for the first time in 21 years.

For some reason the game was on a Sunday, though that actually worked out quite well as the Carling Cup Quarter-Final draw was the previous day. Therefore, the subject of the upcoming tie with Arsenal was very much at the forefront of conversations on the away terrace in the build up to kick-off.

Despite having never won whilst wearing it previously, Rovers' players donned their white 'third shirts' for the clash whilst Boston, whose line-up included former Premier League striker Julian Joachim, were in a hooped variety of their traditional black and amber colours.

On a bitingly cold occasion, it's an understatement to say that higher division superiority showed and had it not been for some poor finishing, Dave Penney's team could easily have wracked up a cricket score as both Lewis Guy and Sean Thornton going close inside the first few minutes.

Somehow the score was still goalless until just before the half-hour mark after which point the game became the Dave Mulligan show.

Having been awarded a free-kick around 25 yards out, Boston immediately knew they were in a spot of bother and the Kiwi full-back subsequently curled a brilliant effort high over the wall and into the top corner, to send the Rovers fans directly behind the goal into raptures.

If one sublime set-piece strike wasn't good enough, the New Zealand international produced another moment of magic shortly into the second period - this time finding the net with a lower drive around the Pilgrims' defensive wall from a similar distance of 25 yards or so.

Despite a Jason Lee (yes, the ex-Nottingham Forest 'defensive' striker) miss from close-range in the closing stages, Boston did force a consolation goal through Ben Futcher deep into injury-time but it proved little more than a consolation as Rovers progressed to Round Three.

Sadly, there was to be no 'glamour' tie in the next round, like there was in the Carling Cup. Instead, Penney's players were handed a trip to League One rivals Port Vale.

Even more sadly is that despite being voted as the 'Player of the Round' for his performance, Mulligan's set-piece didn't even make it onto the 'Best Goals of the FA Cup in 2005/06' DVD which was produced by The FA at the end of that season.

In fairness, however, there were some good goals that year - notably a long-range strike from Steven Gerrard in the dying seconds of the final between Liverpool and West Ham United which Mulligan saw in person at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium due to his aforementioned accolade.

Despite extensive efforts, footage of the Kiwi's brace isn't around on YouTube nowadays though everyone who was at York Street that freezing afternoon in December, 15 years ago, will testify that those set-pieces were two quality strikes of the highest order.