The confrontation between Altingham and Notts County in the first round of the FA Cup turned into an exceptional spectacle, after thick fog covered the floor of Moss Lane Stadium, blocking the view of the players, fans and commentators, in a match that was almost stopped due to weather conditions.
Sports commentator for the British BBC network, Steve Power, described the experience as one of the most difficult circumstances he faced during his career spanning about 35 years, after he found himself unable to follow the events of the match that was broadcast live on BBC Two.
“It was one of the most difficult experiences of my long career,” Bauer said. We could not see anything once the play reached the center circle and beyond, and we did not know which team had possession of the ball, let alone determine the identity of the player carrying it, especially after the 60th minute.
He added that phone messages came in from people who were watching the broadcast, telling him that his voice sounded good, but they could not see what was happening on the field, indicating that he tried to deal with the situation and do the best he could despite the difficulty of the task.
The commentators' suffering was not limited to television broadcasts, as their colleagues on the radio faced similar difficulty in following the match. BBC Radio Nottingham commentator Adam Hassell said that he could barely distinguish the white numbers on the players' shirts, while he was unable to see what was happening on the far side of the field.
As for former Notts County striker and analyst Mark Stallard, he described the scene as being like a “Where is the ball” competition, after those in the journalists’ stand were unable to determine its location, adding that commenting on a match whose events could not be seen was quite absurd.
Altingham, which belongs to the National League, was close to achieving an upset against Notts County, which plays in the First Division, after leading 2-1, before Callum Roberts equalized for the visiting team in the last minutes, forcing the two teams to go to two additional periods, then penalty kicks, which smiled at Notts County.
Power believed that the match, in its first hour, presented all the elements of an exciting FA Cup match, but the fog made it lose a large part of its value as a football show, explaining that the difficulty of visibility made it almost impossible to talk about tactical plans or player movements and effort.
The impact of the weather conditions extended to the coaches as well, as Notts County coach Martin Patterson was unable to clearly follow the events of the second half, while Altingham coach Neil Gibson was unable to evaluate the changes made by his opponent or determine the tactical method he adopted after the substitutions.
Players were also forced to abandon long and diagonal passes, and rely on short passes that do not exceed a distance of five to ten metres, due to their inability to see their teammates in distant spaces.
Power said that the match came very close to being called off, after some players informed him that they were not able to see the goals or the corner flags from the center circle.
The penalty shootout was not spared from the effect of the fog, as the commentator was forced to use the crowd’s reactions to find out what was happening before watching the television replays, especially in the saves that could not be seen at the moment the kicks were taken.
On the other hand, Altingham fans used their mobile lights in an attempt to influence Notts County players during the penalty shootout, in a scene that Power described as part of an exceptional evening that will remain stuck in the memory for a long time.
Bayern Munich announced, on Sunday, in a statement that its goalkeeper and captain, Manuel Neuer, suffered from a partial tear in one of the tendons in his right foot, which forced him not to complete the match against his host, Mainz, on Saturday, in the ninth stage of the German Football League.
In his 550th match in the German League, Neuer became, on Saturday, the oldest player to represent Bayern in the “Bundesliga” at the age of 40 years and 225 days, but he was forced to leave the field in the 45th minute due to an injury to his right foot.
Bayern explained that the tests the player underwent in Munich revealed “a partial tear in one of the tendons in the right foot,” noting that he would miss “for the time being” his captain and first goalkeeper, without specifying the duration of his absence.
According to German media, Neuer will be absent at least until the short winter break between late December and early January.
During this period, Bayern is waiting for 9 matches, including five in the league, two matches in the Champions League, and another in the local cup.
Neuer extended his contract with Bayern for an additional season in mid-May, even though he was forty years old. After the Augsburg match (2-2) on October 10, he felt pain in his right foot. Since then, he has only participated in two Champions League matches against England's Arsenal (2-2) and Spain's Atletico Madrid in Madrid (2-0), in addition to the first half of the Mainz match on Saturday.
Thus, Neuer missed 5 matches due to this injury, and he was replaced by Jonas Orbig (23 years old), who joined the team in January 2025 and is the candidate to succeed him as goalkeeper for the Bavarian club.
Neuer also made room for him in two matches at the beginning of the season, to give him more playing minutes.
“It is very likely that I will retire” at the end of the 2026-2027 season, Neuer said in late July during Bayern’s summer preparations.
The first round of the FA Cup witnessed a series of surprises and remarkable results, topped by a family confrontation between Robbie Savage, coach of Peterborough United, and his son Charlie, a Reading player, who scored against his father's team and contributed to their elimination from the tournament by five clean goals, while Kidderminster achieved one of the most prominent surprises of the round by knocking out Doncaster Rovers.
At Weston Homes Stadium, the confrontation between two teams from the English First Division turned into an offensive display by Reading, amidst the astonishment of Peterborough coach Robbie Savage, who watched his team concede 5 unanswered goals, including a goal signed by his son Charlie.
Daniel Kiriwa opened the scoring for Reading in the 26th minute, after a pass from Andy Rinomhota, before Jack Marriott doubled the score with a header in the 34th minute. In stoppage time of the first half, Charlie Savage increased his father's suffering, after he took possession of the ball following an incomplete pass from Marriott, and fired a shot that hit a defender and landed in the upper corner of the goal.
In the second half, Jimmy Reid added the fourth goal in the 72nd minute, taking advantage of a ball prepared for him by Paudie O'Connor from a free kick executed by Charlie Savage, before Reid returned and scored his second personal goal and the fifth for his team 4 minutes later, so Reading sealed their qualification to the second round.
In one of the most prominent surprises of the tournament, Kidderminster, which belongs to the 5th division, defeated its competitor, Doncaster, from the 3rd division, after beating it 3-0.
Lewis Walker opened the scoring in the 22nd minute, before setting up the second goal for Maz Kuhiar in the 36th minute, while David Davis added the third goal, bringing the team to a victory over a competitor two levels above it in the English football pyramid.
Kidderminster coach Paul Wootton praised the performance of his players, saying that his team started the match well, and that it succeeded in investing in opportunities and igniting the enthusiasm of the fans, noting that the victory represented a reward for the players after a series of good performances that were not accompanied by the desired results.
The surprises did not stop there, as Exeter City, which belongs to the 4th division, succeeded in eliminating Huddersfield, the leader of the 3rd division, by defeating them away from home 2-1.
Exeter took the lead through Jack Taylor in the 12th minute, before Ebani Boate equalized for Huddersfield 8 minutes after the start of the second half, but Charlie Cummins snatched the winning goal 9 minutes before the end.
Blackpool survived a surprise win against Hornchurch, after needing a goal in the 118th minute from Josh Buller to achieve a difficult 2-1 victory after extra time.
Hornchurch had finished the first half ahead with a goal from Henry Hearn, before Jordan Brown equalized in the 55th minute. The home team suffered an additional blow with the expulsion of Henry Sandat, and Blackpool took advantage of its numerical superiority and secured qualification in the final moments of extra time.
In another exciting confrontation, Altrincham came close to achieving a new surprise after leading Notts County 2-1, but Callum Roberts equalized in the 84th minute, extending the match to two additional halves and then penalty kicks, which Notts County won 3-2.
Fleetwood bid farewell to the tournament by losing to Rochdale 1-2 after extra time, after Baba Adeko scored the qualifying goal for the visiting team, ending Fleetwood’s hopes of continuing their “cup” campaign after their previous surprise against Arsenal in the “English League Cup”.
In a match full of goals, Chesterfield beat its rival, Yeovil Town, 4-3, after squandering a 3-1 lead, before Joel Randall scored the winning goal one minute before the end of normal time.
Mansfield also defeated Macclesfield by three clean goals, signed by Nathan Moriah Welsh, Reece Oates, and Jordan Bowery, while his coach Nigel Clough admitted that his team did not make the required start, before its performance improved in the second half and settled the confrontation.
Plymouth booked their place in the second round with a huge victory over Alvechurch 4-0, after Will Evans opened the scoring in the 50th minute, before adding 3 more goals in 11 late minutes. Crossed again by Evans, Michael Baidow, and Ronan Curtis.
Barnsley recorded one of the biggest victories in the round by defeating Aldershot 7-2, in a match in which Cameron McGeehan excelled by scoring a hat-trick, while Bradford swept its rival Marine by seven clean goals, including two goals each for Nick Powell and Adam Phillips.
Leyton Orient qualified by defeating Harborough 5-1, and Crewe Alexandra by defeating Wimbledon 2-1, while Port Vale, which reached the quarter-finals last season, booked its place in the second round by defeating Scunthorpe United 4-2.
Milton Keynes Dons beat Swindon 2-1, Colchester beat Worcester 1-0, while Dover beat Wealdstone 2-0 thanks to a Jack Bates double in the first half.
One of the most notable numbers is that Ollie Pearce needed only 10 seconds to open the scoring for York City against Northampton, before adding a second goal in the match, which ended in a 4-0 victory for his team, with Alex Hunt and Josh Stones participating in the scoring.
Gaisley, which belongs to the seventh division, achieved another surprise by eliminating Sutton with an unanswered goal, which came from a penalty kick executed by Jordan Thewlis in stoppage time.
Carlisle also qualified by defeating Salford, the leaders of Division 4, with a goal from David Ajiboye, while Burton swept its rival Rushden & Diamonds, which belongs to Division 8, 4-0.
Salisbury concluded the series of great results by defeating Sholing 6-0, in a match during which Nathan Odokonyero scored two goals, bringing the team to the second round for the first time since its re-establishment in 2015.
Thus, the “FA Cup Championship” once again imposed its special character, between surprises for lower division clubs, late goals, and wide victories, but the most exciting scene remained distinctly family, after Charlie Savage transformed from a player facing his father’s team to one of the most prominent reasons for his exit from the tournament.
