Tottenham Hotspur Vs. Stevenage, 2012 FA Cup Replay: Spurs Come From Behind In Comfortable Win

Tottenham Hotspur managed to advance to the quarterfinals of the FA Cup against Stevenage, but the victory came at a steep price. Having drawn 0-0 away in the original tie, Spurs would have nonetheless felt comfortable about their prospects for advancing, and not even an early penalty, conceded by Ryan Nelsen and converted by Joel Byrom, would have worried the hosts too much.

Distinctly more problematic, as far as Spurs are concerned, was a horrible ankle injury suffered by centre back Michael Dawson, who ended up stretchered off before the ten minute mark. Dawson's had a very rough season as far as injuries go, and rumblings of damaged ankle ligaments don't bode well for him (or Tottenham's depth in defence). His team was doing its thing, however, levelling via a long-range strike from Jermaine Defoe before halftime.

They were then hit with another injury, with Aaron Lennon forced off with a hamstring injury. That didn't stop Spurs going further ahead thanks to Gareth Bale earning a penalty, and despite some interesting Stevenage pressure Defoe was able to kill off the match entirely with a sweet right footed finish that curled past Chris Day and in at the far post. At 3-1, the jig was up, and the visitors knew it. As a result, the rest of the match was fairly quiet. The better side won, but Stevenage should be fairly proud of their performance over both of these games.