Hartlepool United's Nicky Deverdics' FA Cup luck continues after stunning free-kick

Deverdics struck a brilliant winner for Pools to complete a second-half comeback at Mariners Park.

Shields had led just after the mid-point of the first period when Carl Finnigan scored his 10th goal of the season.

But Devante Rodney finished with aplomb eight minutes after the interval, before the other ‘Dev’ came up with his special after Rhys Oates had been tripped 25 yards out.

The left-back and Jack Munns weighed up the options in front of them and made right call, Nicky’s left-footed dead-ball magic beating the claret wall and beating Jack Norton’s dive to his right.

If there was a better dead-ball strike in the fourth qualifying round then we’d love to see it.

It was the 29-year-old’s third goal for Pools, almost a year since his first, a free-kick in the FA Cup first round win over Stamford.

“Yes, it was a similar sort of thing, it must be a thing for me in the FA Cup,” he said.

“Me and Munnsy had a bit of a discussion on the ball.

“We spoke about Jack bending it and looked at how far it was out and Munnsy said ‘it’s probably too far to bend’.

“So I took control, though I might have done anyway!”

Deverdics always looks capable of producing some magic from anywhere just outside the opposition territory.

The Geordie scored a beauty in the pre-season defeat at Harrogate but would not celebrate his handiwork because it was a friendly.

So the former Barnet midfielder was buzzing Saturday’s screamer proved to be the winner.

“After Harrogate, I said it meant absolutely nothing and I wanted a goal that meant something,” he said. “That’s put us in the next round but some of the lads are trying to take the gloss off it by saying their keeper should have done better.

“That’s the lads for you!”

Deverdics will tune into BBC2 this evening to see the draw for the first round proper of football’s oldest and most famous club competition.

The match-winner is keeping his fingers crossed for a kind pairing.

“We’d like a home tie, it would be nice for the fans to get to sample the FA Cup at the Vic,” he said.

“We got a great following at Shields, the tickets sold out in no time.

“We got through a banana skin today and it would be nice to be at home next.

“We want to stay in the FA Cup for as long as we can, we’d love a run.

“We got over a good hurdle here and hopefully a home tie in the next round.

“Personally I’d prefer a kinder draw – in a couple of rounds on maybe you’d like a tough one, but for now you just want to get through.”

In-form Shields made it a highly uncomfortable afternoon on South Tyneside for Pools, but Deverdics says the boys in blue showed great spirit to edge past a good side.

“Obviously it was a tough place to come,” he said. “They are not used to losing games and have a ridiculous record.

“Fair play to them, they have players a lot better than the league they are in.

“Shields are no mugs and they had a big crowd behind them, got a goal, from our error, but they got a goal and had something to hold on to.

“We had to show character and we did. We had words with each other and we came out and turned the game around.”