Fulham 1 Oldham Athletic 2
Aleksandar Mitrovic missed a hotly-contested penalty as Fulham were dumped out of the FA Cup 2-1 by League Two side Oldham.
Callum Lang headed in the visitors’ 89th-minute winner to stun the Premier League hosts and prompt extended touchline celebrations from caretaker boss and lifelong supporter Pete Wild.
Denis Odoi’s goal early in the second half meant Fulham were expecting to coast home, only for Oldham to turn the tide.
Bournemouth loan striker Sam Surridge equalised from the penalty spot after Ryan Sessegnon fouled Oldham captain Peter Clarke with his first act after stepping off the bench.
And then Lang buried Gevaro Nepomuceno’s teasing cross, to spark exuberant celebrations on both the Oldham bench and among the delirious travelling supporters.
Replacement striker Mitrovic had spurned the chance to put Fulham back in front from the spot just moments before Oldham’s winner.
The Serbia striker’s first touch after replacing captain Tom Cairney was to step up and strike the penalty — only to see goalkeeper Daniel Iversen produce a fine save at full stretch.
Fulham’s penalty had only been awarded after a lengthy check from the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), with Oldham furious and insistent Christopher Missilou had not connected with Cairney, and that the Fulham skipper had dived.
Mitrovic was the man fuming when Aboubakar Kamara insisted on overruling club orders to take and miss a penalty in Fulham’s 1-0 win over Huddersfield on December 29th.
The former Newcastle man proved the hero that day, stealing a late winner.
But in this big FA Cup shock, it was the 24-year-old’s turn to miss from the spot.
That failed penalty ensured one level of justice then, before Oldham dished out their own brand of summary sentencing with Lang sealing an old-fashioned cup upset.
Queens Park Rangers 2 Leeds United 1
Jake Bidwell’s second-half header handed QPR a 2-1 FA Cup victory over Leeds United and a rare place in the fourth round.
Bidwell headed home Luke Freeman’s left-wing corner with 15 minutes remaining to give the west London club their first third-round win without the need of a replay in 23 years.
Leeds had hit back after Aramide Oteh’s 23rd-minute penalty put Rangers ahead at Loftus Road.
Young forward Oteh calmly converted from the spot after Bidwell had been brought down by Leif Davis.
However, the visitors were level less than two minutes later. Goalkeeper Matt Ingram, given a chance to impress having been kept out by Joe Lumley this season, fumbled Lewis Baker’s free-kick and Aapo Halme pounced on the loose ball to equalise.
Both sides had chances after that, with Leeds goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell producing several saves — including two other Bidwell headers from Freeman corners — before the winning goal.
Woking 0 Watford 2
Watford captain Troy Deeney came off the substitutes’ bench to wrap up their FA Cup third-round win over non-league Woking.
The Premier League outfit made hard work of seeing off their hosts, Will Hughes giving them a first-half lead before Deeney was introduced late on to secure a 2-0 victory in Surrey.
A massive 110 places separated the two clubs in the football pyramid as they took to the pitch at the Laithwaite Community Stadium — but National League South promotion hopefuls Woking gave a spirited performance.
Their manager Alan Dowson, joined in the dugout by coach and Sky Sports commentator Martin Tyler, said before the game that it was “ridiculous” to suggest his side could cause a shock.
In truth they never looked like pulling off a giant-killing but they also held their own at times as Watford laboured to build on their lead.
Millwall 2 Hull City 1
Substitute Shane Ferguson’s brilliant late double earned Millwall a place in the FA Cup fourth round as they came from behind to record a 2-1 win over Hull at the Den.
In a game of few clear-cut chances, a much-changed Hull side had taken the lead shortly after half-time, when Jon Toral combined well with Nouha Dicko and finished tidily.
But Ferguson levelled the scores with nine minutes to go when he took a short corner, got the ball back and curled a sumptuous finish into the top corner.
His second, three minutes later, was even better, a free-kick floated past George Long and into the net.
It was harsh on the Hull keeper who, for 80 minutes, had been superb to keep out the home side, but was no match for Ferguson’s magic.
Sheffield United 0 Barnet 1
Barnet produced one of the biggest shocks of the FA Cup third round as the non-league side knocked out Championship high-fliers Sheffield United with a 1-0 win at Bramall Lane.
Shaquile Coulthirst’s first-half penalty saw the Bees eliminate a side 83 places above them in the Football League pyramid.
It was a particularly special occasion for Barnet caretaker boss Darren Currie, whose uncle Tony has a stand named after him at Bramall Lane after a glittering eight-year spell with the Blades from 1968-76.
United boss Chris Wilder made 10 changes to his promotion-chasing side, with only defender Martin Crainie keeping his place from the win at Wigan.
By contrast, Barnet were unchanged from their 1-1 Vanarama National League draw with Boreham Wood five days ago, and it quickly became apparent that their greater cohesion would cause the hosts problems.
Preston North End 1 Doncaster Rovers 3
Two goals in the final 20 minutes saw Doncaster cause an FA Cup third round upset with a 3-1 win at Preston North End.
The League One side hit the front thanks to John Marquis’ fifth-minute header during an open first half.
They were pegged back by an Andrew Hughes header as the Championship outfit started the second period strongly.
But Tom Anderson scrambled the ball home with 18 minutes to go to put the visitors in control and Rovers sealed their place in the fourth round for the first time in nine seasons when Mallik Wilks slotted home in the 87th minute.
