Millwall exited the Emirates FA Cup at the Third Round stage on Saturday afternoon as Leicester City were 3-2 winners at The Den but two Millwall Community Trust Ambassadors were on the scoresheet.
Cesare Casadei gave the visitors against the run of play in South London, before Foxes captain Ricardo Pereira doubled the advantage in the first-half. Millwall Community Trust Lions Living (Sustainability) Ambassador Duncan Watmore then grabbed a deserved goal for Millwall to halve the deficit, only for Thomas Cannon to put Leicester 3-1 up shortly after.
Millwall Community Trust Education and Employment Ambassador Zian Flemming notched with four minutes to go to make it 3-2, but The Lions could not force an equaliser and were instead knocked out of the competition.
Joe Edwards was able to call upon Wes Harding once again against The Foxes, whilst Joe Bryan and Duncan Watmore also returned to the starting XI. The substitute's bench, meanwhile, contained a quartet of Under 21s stars in Kamarl Grant, George Walker, Nino Adom-Malaki and Sha'mar Lawson.
The Lions started on the front foot against their opponents, forcing a couple of opportunties, but Watmore could only draw a save from Jakub Stolarczyk. Watmore and Danny McNamara then worked well down the right-hand side with seven minutes on the clock, however, once again, the goalkeeper was equal to a shot by the right-back.
Kevin Nisbet then fired over as the chances continued to flow for Millwall, whilst Matija Sarkic had to rush out at the other end to deny The Foxes as they looked to threaten around the 15-minute mark.
Just a minute later, the visitors were in front with their first real effort of the match as Yunus Akgun's cross was headed in by Casadei at the back post.
The Lions were to carry on as normal, though, with Watmore forcing Stolarczyk into a save once again at the midway point of the half, whilst both Nisbet and Bryan tried their luck, but to no avail. Watmore was proving a nuisance to the Leicester backline and hit one inches over on the half-hour mark, with Ryan Leonard - on his 150th Millwall appearance - seeing a cross deflected just past the far post moments later.
Jake Cooper headed a Bryan corner-kick over the crossbar as The Lions continued to pepper the Leicester goal, but with six minutes to play until the break - and with The Foxes' second effort of the afternoon - captain Ricardo Pereira was able to ghost into the box and fire past Sarkic to make it 2-0.
Akgun worked Sarkic into a save as the visitors looked to make it three before the half-time whistle, with one more Millwall chance coming as Nisbet went for goal, but his attempt was blocked.
The second-half was less than 20 seconds old when Millwall could have got a goal back, however, Nisbet's shot was blocked by the Leicester defence. Substitute Ryan Longman then drew a comfortable save from Stolarczyk and Watmore twisted and turned in the penalty area only for the stopper to claim as The Lions' onslaught carried on, but Millwall were indebited to Sarkic on 52 minutes as the goalkeeper made a smart double stop from Casadei and Akgun.
There were 56 minutes played when The Lions finally got their reward, as George Honeyman's corner was touched on by Zian Flemming and into the path of Watmore, who tucked the ball home at the back post.
Five minutes later, though, The Foxes' two-goal advantage was restored as a long ball forward caught out the Millwall defence, with Cannon rounding Sarkic and guiding the ball into an empty net.
Tom Bradshaw replaced Nisbet with a view to shaking things up in attack, and it was Watmore's cross which almost found the Welshman lurking in the box with 15 minutes to play, but Stolarczyk claimed.
Another double-save from Sarkic kept the deficit at two going into the final 10 minutes, whilst at the other end, Bradshaw was met by the dive of Stolarczyk as he struck left-footed from inside the area. From that corner, however, Flemming guided the ball into the bottom corner on the volley to make it 3-2.
Bradshaw's glancing header travelled towards goal but was saved at the beginning of five minutes of stoppage-time, with Flemming's low free-kick rolling just past the far post in the dying embers of the match.
