Cambridge United exited the 2018/19 Emirates FA Cup at the first hurdle with a hugely disappointing display that saw Guiseley take the spoils as 4-3 winners at Nethermoor Park.
Joe Dunne named an unchanged U’s side for the clash, with Ade Azeez the only addition to the United bench in place of Harry Darling.
The U’s were sent a couple of early warnings that the visitors would be no push overs in West Yorkshire, as Louis Walsh tested David Forde with a shot from 20 yards inside a minute before the U’s keeper then had to carefully watch a lobbed effort by Will Hatfield creep just over the top.
Joe Dunne’s men gathered themselves and took control of possession up to the midway point of the half, although they found it a little tricky to create anything meaningful on goal for a short spell.
When they did on 20 minutes, after a George Maris sliding challenge presented Jabo Ibehre with the ball one-on-one, the striker was a little wasteful as he rifled the attempt off target.
Maris almost caught keeper Joe Green off guard with a disguised shot from a free kick 35 yards from goal that dipped wide of the mark.
Guiseley then pounced with the opening goal in some style as Will Hatfield caught a sweet half volley which whistled past the outstretched David Forde to break the deadlock on 26 minutes.
A brilliantly weighted pass through by Jevani Brown put Ibehre in another one-on-one situation ten minutes later, but the striker was denied the chance to level the scores with a brave save by Green on this occasion.
However it was the hosts who struck again before the break when right back Cliff Moyo travelled forward parallel with the United area before his cross looped up and over Forde to pick out the bottom corner and leave the U’s with it all to do in the second half.
It got from bad to worse minutes after half time though, when Kaine Felix latched on to the end of a deep free kick into the area, and cut back on to his left to drill in the third goal for the Lions, giving United an enormous task.
Jabo Ibehre beat keeper Green to Reggie Lambe’s cross three minutes later but got a little too much contact on his header which sailed above the target, before the ball then fell nicely to the striker from a corner moments later where again his attempt was always rising.
Kingsley James slotted away the host’s fourth goal from six yards out on 55 minutes as the U’s FA Cup journey for the season well and truly moved out of reach.
Ibehre slid in to direct Jevani Brown’s cross off the left into the net and pull a goal back with 25 minutes left on the clock.
A well placed finish from George Maris in the last minute of regular time, and a prodded finish by Ibehre in the second of five added minutes saw the U’s mount a very late fight back but they were still left to taste first round defeat.
Guiseley A.F.C: Green, Moyo, Heaton, Purver (Ray Harvey, 83 mins), Thornton, Halls, Felix, James, Liburd (Odejayi, 67 mins), Hatfield, Walsh (Walters, 53 mins)
Bookings: Hatfield
Cambridge United: Forde, Halliday, Taylor, Taft, Carroll, Deegan (Lewis, 71 mins), O’Neil (Amoo, 45 mins), Maris, Lambe (Azeez, 60 mins), Brown, Ibehre
Bookings: Lambe
Attendance: 1,097