Villa through after dubious penalty

Ashley Young was awarded a soft penalty when he was brought down on the left side of the box

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Sunday, 04, Jan 2009 09:03

A controversial late penalty gave Aston Villa a 2-1 win over Gillingham in the FA Cup third round tie at the Priestfield Stadium.

James Milner slotted in the spot-kick 11 minutes from time after Ashley Young collided with Adam Miller in the box.

Milner had earlier given Villa the lead before Simeon Jackson equalised for the League Two outfit.

And Villa will feel relieved at booking their place in the fourth round after being given a stern test by the Gills.

It looked to be a comfortable afternoon for the visitors when they broke the deadlock on 13 minutes when Stiliyan Petrov teed-up up Milner, who lashed the ball into the corner from the edge of the box.

But the Gills, 74 places below Villa in the league ladder, dominated the rest of the half with Dennis Oli firing inches wide while Jackson failed to find the target with a header from close range.

Villa absorbed the pressure and should have wrapped up the game before half-time with teenage striker Nathan Delfouneso volleying over with the goal at his mercy while Ashley Young's shot was kept out by Simon Royce minutes later.

Martin O'Neill's men cranked up the pressure after the break with Nicky Shorey testing Royce with a venomous effort while Delfouneso put a header well wide.

But Mark Stimson's side stunned the Premier League side by equalising on 57 minutes when Jackson bamboozled Zat Knight before hammering a ferocious shot past Friedel.

Villa responded well to conceding with Delfouneso lashing a shot agonisingly wide before Curtis Davies headed over.

But the turning point came on 79 minutes when Ashley Young won a penalty after crashing into Miller, with Milner slotting in the spot-kick.

The Gills threw everything at the visitors in the dying minutes, but Villa held on to progress into the next round.