In years to come, Andy Wright will look back on what might have been. At the age of 30, this was perhaps his final chance to make a name for himself in an unglamorous career that has taken him around clubs such as Stocksbridge Park Steels, Droylsden, Harrogate Town and, bizarrely, Fortuna Sittard in the Netherlands. But when opportunity knocked last night, with five minutes remaining, he could not quite take it. The moment passed and Blyth Spartans’ FA Cup hopes went with it.

It seems wrong to suggest that Blyth’s heroics in the Cup this season should be overshadowed by a tale of personal woe, but this is a competition whose history has been enriched by the stories of individuals who have risen to the occasion and those who have not. Wright, who had been sent on as a late substitute to try to trouble the Blackburn Rovers defence, had the perfect opportunity to force a replay against the Barclays Premier League club, but, unmarked at the far post from Alex Gildea’s cross, he could only steer his volley agonisingly wide. The excited locals let out a collective groan and, as the final whistle blew in this small town on the Northumberland coast, Wright wore the look of a broken man.

Sam Allardyce, the Blackburn manager, breathed a sigh of relief. By his own admission, Allardyce would have been “slaughtered” if his team had lost to their Blue Square North opponents, given that he changed his entire starting line-up to look at a number of youngsters and fringe players, but Wright’s profligacy, combined with an exquisite free kick from Carlos Villanueva in the 59th minute, will spare him any such recriminations. For that, he was grateful.

“I’m glad that we’re not victims of one of the shocks,” Allardyce said. “I thought it [Wright's chance] was a goal, to be honest. It was harder to miss than to score from that position. We were very comfortable until the last ten minutes, but they were bound to get a chance at some stage. Fortunately for us, the lad couldn’t take it and that was their chance come and gone.”

It was with occasions like this in mind that the FA introduced a rule in 2003 to prevent non-League clubs moving home ties to bigger grounds for financial reasons, as Farnborough Town did for their meeting with Arsenal six years ago. Certainly, there was something gratifying about the image of Blackburn’s players shuffling through the cramped corridors of Croft Park in search of the dressing-rooms, which were rather more, well, spartan than those to which they are accustomed at Old Trafford and the Emirates Stadium.

The lack of household names in the Blackburn squad changed the context somewhat, but there was still the stirring sight of Johann Vogel, who once shared the same AC Milan midfield as Andrea Pirlo and Kaká, being dumped on his backside by Chris McCabe, once of Seaham Red Star. Making life awkward for Blackburn was a challenge that Blyth’s players were enjoying, but the difficult part was stringing together enough passes to put their opponents under pressure. Only once in the first half did they threaten, with Ged Dalton’s shot drifting wide after a mix-up between Mark Bunn and Aaron Mokoena.

Blackburn, in control for most of the opening period, were being kept at arm’s length, but, unfortunately for Blyth, distance was to prove no object for Villanueva. The Chile midfield player was fouled — according to the referee at least — by Gildea on the edge of the penalty area and, after dusting himself down, he curled a perfect free kick beyond the reach of Mark Bell and into the top corner.

The goal earned Blackburn a fourth-round meeting with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in the next round and it seems cruel to point out that Blyth, rather than facing a North-East derby against Ricky Sbragia’s team on January 24, will be heading to King’s Lynn.

All good things come to an end, though, and, when Harry Dunn and his players look back on their Cup exploits this season, which brought victories over Shrewsbury Town and Bournemouth, they will do so with fondness — even if, in Wright’s case, the healing process may take a little longer.

Blyth (4-1-4-1): M Bell — K Boyle, R Pell, A Leeson, A White (sub: S Todd, 63min) — G Williams — G Dalton (sub: A Wright, 70), C McCabe, A Gildea, S Reay — R Dale. Substitutes not used: P Farman, G Brown, J Poole, P Watson, A Hume.

Blackburn (4-4-1-1): M Bunn — D Simpson, A Mokoena, Z Khizanishvili, M Olsson — A Judge, V Grella (sub: K Andrews, 60), J Vogel, K Treacy — C Villanueva (sub: J Roberts, 59) — M Derbyshire (sub: B Hodge, 83). Substitutes not used: J Brown, G Gunning, A Doran, A Haworth. Booked: Mokoena.

Referee: A Marriner

Explore Football

• Premier League

• Football League

• Scotland

• European Football

• International Football

• TheGame

• Live Match Tracker

• The Fink Tank

• Fantasy Football