The Shots lifted their first trophy of the season by taking the Setanta Shield after extra time and a penalty shoot out. Once again, Setanta viewers got their money's worth from a game featuring the Shots, although they did their best to give it away at times. The crowd of 3714 were also in for a treat.
Although both sides made a nervous start it was an open game from start to finish, and the visitors had the first effort at goal in the 11th minute but Andy Burgess, who would feature large later in the game, saw his effort drift just wide.
The Shots first effort was from a corner, which was only half cleared as far as Lewis Chalmers whose 25-yard stinger was well saved by the Rushden keeper Roberts. Scott Donnelly later saw a curling, long-range effort go just wide of the far post. Apart from Kirk Hudson's late volley, which went straight to the keeper, the Shots showed little else in front of goal in the first half, despite gradually getting on top of their opponents.
Rushden's only other real opportunity came from a Burgess cross, but Shots old boy Jon Challinor managed to head over from 8 yards out when unmarked. 
The Shots were forced to reshuffle their defence when Dave Winfield finally succumbed to a series of knocks and was replaced by Rob Gier.
Surprisingly, Gary Waddock moved Dean Smith to the centre of defence to play alongside Ricky Newman. Unsurprisingly it transpired that it was a masterstroke as Smith put in easily his best performance in a Shots shirt.
Despite the Shots beginning to play some fine football, they couldn't make anything of the pressure they were putting their visitors under and the match remained scoreless at half time.
In the second half the Shots started the brighter of the two sides, with Donnelly and Joel Grant both having decent efforts saved by Roberts. Waddock then swapped his centre midfield, with Harding replacing a tired looking Lewis Chalmers. This gave the Shots more aerial dominance in midfield and the game started opening up, with the first half nerves now seemingly gone.
Joel Grant, who was being well marshalled by another ex-Shot in Curtis Osano, albeit with some help from his team mates, went on a great run to set up Junior Mendes who fired just wide. The play immediately switched to the other end where the hapless Rankine missed one of a glut of chances he had during the game.
The deadlock was broken after 70 minutes when Donnelly sent Hudson away down the right and Hudson's cross was touched in from close range by Junior Mendes. However, the East Bank was still singing in celebration when Rushden levelled. A general lack of concentration in the defence left Ruiz exposed and Burgess finished from 10 yards.
As the game looked increasingly likely to go to extra time the Shots had two chances to clinch it, through Mendes and Donnelly, but it was Rankine who will wonder how he didn't win the game for his side after missing with a header from inside the six yard box.
John Grant was replaced by Danny Hylton as extra time got under way and, following yet another miss by Rankine, Kirk Hudson gave the Shots the advantage again on 95 minutes with a low shot from 20 yards out which evaded the despairing dive of Roberts and crept inside the post.
Typically, the Shots did their best to let the opposition back into the game by giving away a penalty five minutes later. Burgess took the penalty but the hero of the night, Mikhail Jaimez-Ruiz, dived full length to his left and clung on to the shot. This gave the Shots the boost they needed and, just after the start of the second period of extra time, they extended their lead. Hylton, who was testing the fitness of the Rushden defence with his typical nagging attention, hit a pile driver that was pushed away by Roberts. Hudson hit a follow up shot which was blocked, but only into the path of Scott Donnelly, who finished from two yards with a header into the now vacant net.
Not wishing to be too comfortable, the Shots then invited Rushden back to the party. After Dean Smith had failed to clear an innocuous ball down the Shots right, the ball broke into the area where Donnelly made an awkward tackle on El-Kholti inside the box. The Rushden player needed no invitation to hit the floor and the referee pointed to the spot again. Donnelly was booked for the tackle, somewhat harshly, but the penalty award was fair enough. Burgess stepped up again for the spot kick and this time Ruiz went the wrong way.
The final five minutes was certainly going to be interesting and Rushden had the better of the chances as the Shots, now playing with just 8 fit men, desperately tried to hold on. Rushden's equalizer was a bizarre affair. A low cross into the near post seemed to be no problem for Ruiz but, just as the tannoy announced there would be two added minutes, Ruiz fumbled the ball a yard out. Even Rankine couldn't miss this chance, and he duly obliged by nudging the ball over the line with his nose.
The penalty shoot-out went the way of the Shots in the end. Donnelly, Harding, Newman and Hudson all made no mistake. Gooding missed Rushden's first and, when Ruiz saved their fifth, from Chris Hope, it was the Shots who went wild.