And on this whistle, unleash chaos. Nobody really knows how Plymouth Argyle managed to survive those nine minutes of injury time at the end, those interminable minutes when hearts were pounding and nerves were shredding and it felt like not just Conor Hazard’s goal, not just Home Park, but Plymouth itself, was under siege.
Just as nobody had really seen this coming: the team rooted to the foot of the Championship, hosting perhaps the best team in the world right now, and sending them spectacularly to the canvas. Ryan Hardie’s penalty early in the second half was the difference between the sides, and even then nobody really believed. But as those nine minutes ticked away, one of the greatest shocks in the modern history of the FA Cup felt agonisingly close and agonisingly elusive all at once.
