NEWENT Town produced a stunning comeback before goalkeeper Adam Clark became the hero in a dramatic FA Vase penalty shootout victory over Almondsbury at Wildsmith Meadow on Saturday.

The Daffs recovered from 2-0 down at half time and 3-1 behind during the second half to force a 3-3 draw before winning the shootout 4-2.

Almondsbury made a flying start, with Liam Nicholls opening the scoring after seven minutes when he raced onto Jaiden Burnard’s through ball and poked beyond Clark.

Nicholls struck again two minutes later, firing home after Reece Purnell had controlled the ball on the turn and released him through the Newent defence.

The visitors carried their two-goal advantage into the interval, leaving Newent facing an early exit from the FA Vase First Qualifying Round.

But the Daffs responded almost immediately after the restart as Luke Firkin converted a penalty three minutes into the second half to halve the deficit.

Clark then produced a fine stop to deny Purnell on the hour, but Almondsbury restored their two-goal cushion eight minutes later when Nicholls completed his hat-trick at the back post.

Newent refused to surrender and Fin Jones made it 3-2 on 74 minutes, touching home after a header had been sent back across goal.

The comeback was completed with nine minutes remaining as Malique West finished past the Almondsbury goalkeeper to level the tie at 3-3 and send the contest to penalties.

Clark then took centre stage in the shootout, producing three saves as Newent prevailed 4-2 from the spot to seal their place in the next round.

The club hailed Clark following the final whistle after his decisive contribution capped a memorable afternoon at Wildsmith Meadow.

The victory ensured Newent’s first cup adventure of the new campaign continued after a remarkable fightback in front of their home supporters.