A dream two minutes of drama at Bramall blew Charlton Athletic away and sent Sheffield United into The FA Cup Semi-Final. Second-half goals from Ryan Flynn and John Brayford within 120 seconds of each other earned the Blades their spot at Wembley as Nigel Clough's side deservedly progressed. A wall of noise greeted the teams as the home faithful belted out their famous 'Greasy Chip Butty' anthem as the action got under way. Sheffield United had already dumped three teams from higher divisions out of The Cup on this run, overcoming Aston Villa, Fulham and Nottingham Forest, and it was clear the home fans were confident of claiming another scalp. The Blades started well, taking the game to their nervy-looking Championship opponents, but failing to create a clear-cut opportunity. As the visitors settled, they themselves began to enjoy more of the ball, with Diego Poyet and Johnnie Jackson attempting to push the Addicks forward. Callum Harriott's left-foot dipper from 25 yards was well held by keeper Mark Howard on 22 minutes as the Addicks recorded their first real effort of note. Charlton were pushing their opponents further back, and after a neat build-up Marcus Tudgay struck from the edge of the area, but his low drive was saved by Howard down to his left. The match swung once again as the first-half neared its close, and United took back control. Firstly Jamie Murphy, encouraged by the roar of the Kop behind the goal, shot from distance but dragged his effort wide of the post. Then on 38 minutes, Jackson was booked for a lunge on Ryan Flynn down the right. The defence failed to properly clear the resulting free-kick. As it was fired back the ball deflected off a defender into the path of Conor Coady, who took a touch before drilling past the keeper. However, a linesman's flag for offside soon dampened the celebrations. The hosts were really turning the screw as the half-time whistle approached and with seconds remaining Harry Maguire strode forward from the back to begin a move which resulted in Bob Harris shooting just over from the edge of the area. Charlton had regained their composure as the second-half began, and they had a massive chance to take the lead on the hour mark through Callum Harriott. A ball was whipped across the area and he slid in with the goal at his mercy, but as Bramall Lane held its breath, the Charlton winger whizzed his effort wide to the delight of the home fans. And how costly that miss would prove to be just five minutes later as Ryan Flynn sent the red half of Sheffield into dreamland. He met Jose Baxter's cross right footed at the back post to prod home from close-range as the stadium erupted. Charlton were well and truly rocked, and two minutes later they suffered a fatal second blow as the roof came off. The Blades sealed their place at Wembley through John Brayson, whose right footed effort from outside the box seemed to take a deflection, wrong-footing Hamer in goal, before nestling in the bottom right corner. Charlton were gone as United refused to relent, and they had further opportunities to stretch their lead. There was another disallowed goal for Coady, but in the end two goals were enough. Sheffield United (1-4-5-1): 1 Mark Howard 4 John Brayford, 5 Harry Maguire, 15 Neill Collins, 3 Bob Harris, 7 Ryan Flynn, 8 Michael Doyle (c), 17 Conor Coady, 21 Stefan Scougall, 23 Jamie Murphy, 11 Jose Baxter Substitutes: 22 Ben Davies for Baxter, 79. 9 Chris Porter for Scougall, 86. 14 Stephen McGinn for Flynn, 90. Subs not used: 6 Matt Hill, 12 Shaun Miller, 25 George Long, 28 Kieron Freeman Manager: Nigel Clough Goals: Ryan Flynn 65 mins, John Brayson 67 mins Bookings: Ryan Flynn 14 minutes, Jose Baxter 80 mins Charlton Athletic (1-4-4-2): 1 Ben Hamer, 16 Rhoys Wiggins, 5 Michael Morrison, 15 Richard Wood, 23 Lawrie Wilson, 4 Johnnie Jackson (c), 39 Diego Poyet, 11 Callum Harriott, 24 Jordan Cousins, 9 Simon Church, 18 Marcus Tudgay Substitutes: 42 Astrit Ajdarevic for Church, 65. 8 Reza Ghoochannejhad for Wilson, 71. 7 Danny Green for Poyet, 71. Subs not used: 2 Andy Hughes, 6 Dorian Dervite, 21 Yohann Thuram-Ulien, 25 Loic Nego Manager: Chris Powell To find out more about the FA visit: http://thefa.com Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/FA The FA Cup on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheFACup England on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EnglandTeam FAWSL on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/FAWSL

• published: 10 Mar 2014
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