Mark Hitchcock’s 70th-minute strike ended Codicote’s Division One Cup hopes for another season as they were beaten 2-1 at home by Harpenden Town on Tuesday night.

Charlie Gould had put league leaders Town ahead five minutes before the break but Reggie Ross’ lob brought the scores to parity within moments of the restart.

It was the visitors, who had won nine of their previous 10 games in all competitions prior to their trip to the John Clements Sports & Community Centre, who sneaked the victory though and they will now entertain Wodson Park in the last four.

Codicote welcomed back Leeroy Williams while Jake Hoy failed a pre-match fitness test.

From the first whistle of this entertaining cup match both sides looked dangerous in attack.

Williams breached the back-line early on but couldn’t find the vital touch.

At the other end Codicote were working hard, keeping out the long raking balls into the channels from Harpenden.

With only 10 minutes gone Codicote looked to have got their noses in front.

Under pressure from Williams, the Harpenden defender clattered into his own keeper and the striker pounced on the loose ball and tapped into the open net. To Codicote’s dismay the official disallowed the goal for a foul on the keeper.

With the hosts looking dangerous Alfie Barker was next to be denied.

With the Harpenden keeper looking to launch long once again, he fumbled his drop-kick and Barker picked up the loose ball, cannoning it goalwards.

Once again the officials awarded Harpenden a free-kick despite Barker being five yards away.

The home side were determined to put things right while having to be at their best in keeping Harpenden’s frontline quiet.

Soon after, for a third time, Codicote thought they had done enough to take the lead.

Williams raced onto the through-ball and lobbed the advancing keeper. The ball bounced and ricocheted off the bar and was eventually cleared by the visitors’ defence.

Then Williams struck the woodwork once more. This time the striker’s shot looked bound for the net only to strike the post.

Having taken a battering Harpenden found themselves in front.

A quick breakaway caught the home side’s defence out and Gould coolly dispatched the ball beyond the despairing reach of keeper Andrew McEwan.

The second half saw Codicote again on the front foot and within seconds of the half-time whistle they were level.

Dan Harper’s 30-yard pass saw Ross sneak between defender and keeper and lob the ball into the empty net.

Cod were in the ascendancy and Barker hit the woodwork for the third time of the evening.

With 20 minutes to go, Harpenden’s threat on the counter-attack paid dividends.

A direct run saw Codicote back-pedalling and, under pressure from defenders and keeper, Hitchcock lifted the ball over McEwan and into the net.

Codicote chucked everything at Harpenden but in doing left gaps at the back and only the offside flag saved the home side from conceding a third.

Manager Steve Young soon withdrew skipper and central defender James Taylor and went four up front but as Codicote drove balls into the heart of Harpenden’s penalty area, the away side manfully kept the home side at bay to advance.