Fulham 4 Notts C 0:THE DREAM really is over now for Notts County, whose dalliance with fame and mysterious fortunes appears finally to have crumbled in the course of a week that sadly saw more drama off the pitch than they were able to produce on it.
The sale of the club to Ray Trew on Thursday and the exit of Sven-Goran Eriksson marked the end of a brief and, for all the hype, disappointing attempt to transform it into an unlikely football superpower. The FA Cup offered another shot at glory and that has now gone as well. All that remains is the less glamorous gruel of League Two, albeit with a decent chance of promotion.
“We’ve thoroughly enjoyed our cup run, make no mistake,” their caretaker manager, Dave Kevan, said. “We had a fantastic day here and a fantastic day at Wigan [where they won in the fourth round] but our priority was always promotion and that’s what we’re fully focused on.”
Few who saw this display would bet against it, despite the one-sided scoreline. County had won six of their previous eight games and were more than competitive for an hour of this one before, already two goals down, they collectively lost focus.
“They were fantastic,” said Kevan of his players. “I’m very proud of how they played. Fulham thoroughly deserved their win but I thought the scoreline flattered them.”
Fulham started ominously, creating a decent chance within two minutes as Bobby Zamora collected Chris Baird’s pass on the right of the penalty area and shot just wide of the far post. But County, encouraged by an impressive travelling support, quickly proved themselves organised and able.
If Fulham only occasionally displayed their class, they invariably scored when they did. After 22 minutes Simon Davies made a run inside from the left, Danny Murphy chipped a pass perfectly into his path and Davies shielded the ball from John Thompson before surprising Kasper Schmeichel with an early and perfectly angled shot into the far corner.
Then in the 41st minute David Elm prodded a first-time pass to Zamora, who controlled smartly on his chest before scoring with the outside of his left foot.
County faded in the second half and offered little more than a succession of not particularly dangerous long-range efforts from Davies.
Fulham relaxed and had started the process of replacing their more important players when Damien Duff cut inside Jonnie Jackson and shot through the full-back’s legs and past Schmeichel. Five minutes later Stefano Okaka, who had only just replaced Zamora, raced through to add a fourth.
