Henley Lions have reached the final of the Junior Premier League National Cup after a thrilling semi-final win over Coventry City.

The team, made of up of young footballers from Wycombe and Marlow, won 4-3 on penalties after it was 2-2 after extra time.

The Lions arrived at a windy Evesham ground to face Coventry in what was the club’s biggest game to date.

However, they got off to the worst start possible with Coventry taking the lead less than 15 seconds in.

The boys looked nervous and only a few minutes later gave themselves a huge mountain to climb going 2-0 down after a superbly placed free kick.

Henley battled away and managed to get to the break without falling further behind. A much-needed team talk and reshuffle of tactics fuelled the Lions to start their unbelievable comeback.

Henley showed pure desire and heart and for the next 30 minutes and they were the dominant team.

Some superb attacking moves from the Lions were on show but the team just couldn’t put the ball in the net.

Out of nowhere the Coventry City goalkeeper struck the ball into Rocky Williams who turned around to see the ball in the net. 2-1. Game on.

Lions had their tails up and continued to push for an equaliser which eventually came through a spot kick strike from Rocky.

The comeback was complete and the game could have been over with chances from Jake Coomes and Gabriel Maslen just going wide.

A superb defensive display from the young Lions saw a goalless extra time taking them into penalties. Step up Steen Alden.

The Lions goalkeeper saw a penalty hit the post before saving the next one to give Lions the edge, only to step up himself and put the Lions into the National Cup Final.

Coach Nick Hunt couldn’t hide his pride at seeing his team get into such a prestigious final. He said: “It was a brilliant comeback and to beat teams like Coventry and Peterborough is such a big deal for us. Roll on the final.”

Their opponents in the last two will be North Somerset who defeated Bristol City.