Rangers boss is up for the FA Cup
Tuesday 28th September 2010, 8:30AM BST.
Stafford Rangers manager Chris Brindley believes reaching the FA Cup third qualifying round for the first time since 2007 would give the whole club a lift.
Rangers welcome Eastwood to Marston Road tonight in a second qualifying round replay, after a 1-1 draw at Coronation Park on Saturday.
A trip to Matlock and £4,500 in prize money await the winners, with a winnable tie in the next round against lower league opposition.
Brindley can call upon captain Craig McAughtrie again after a one-match suspension, but will miss injured duo Jon Patrick and Nick Wellecomme.
Left-back Patrick set to miss tonight and Saturday’s trip to Hinckley United with a hamstring strain, while Wellecomme is set to step up his comeback from an ankle injury this week after six weeks out.
Ashley Woolliscroft and Ross Davidson picked up knocks in Saturday’s game but should play, although Harry Davis and Kelvin Mellor are out under the terms of their loan from Crewe.
Tonight is an all-Blue Square North clash with Rangers desperate for a decent cup run, having failed to progress past the first hurdle in the competition since reaching the second round in 2006.
The tide seems to have turned in the favour of Brindley’s men as they are now the hosts, but the manager warns the tie is still very much up in the air.
He said: “It’s an even game with two evenly matched sides, we were pleased with the draw on Saturday and we would always fancy ourselves a little bit more at home.
“To get through would be massive for us, as it’s been a dour place over the past couple of years. Whether you a player, director or a fan, everybody needs a lift and if we could win this game it would give the whole club a boost.
“But it’s still a very finely balanced tie and it’s all to play for.”
UK Sport
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