Don't get into your car with any regrets, says Tonbridge Angels' assistant Alex O'Brien

ALEX O’BRIEN has told Tonbridge Angels players not to get into their cars with any regrets on Tuesday night, writes Stephen McCartney.


The Angels do battle with Harrow Borough in the Ryman Premier League play-off’s, knowing that two wins will seal the club’s long-awaited place in Blue Square Bet South for the very first time in their history.

Tonbridge Angels completed their campaign in second place in the table with a
2-0 win at Horsham at the weekend, courtesy of goals from substitute Fraser Logan and Scott Kinch, but all those 42 league games count for nothing in the play-off lottery.

The club have secured home advantage against Harrow Borough in the semi-finals and against Bury Town or Lowestoft Town if they make it through to Saturday’s final.

And they must make home advantage count!

It is the week for all Angels – both on and off the pitch – to stand up and be counted in a week that will make or break their season.

Longmead Stadium can be a hostile place with fans crammed into the terraces – let’s prove this week that the club mean business and that Tommy Warrilow’s side deserve to clinch promotion along with foes Sutton United.

Assistant manager, O’Brien has set the tone for the week ahead, saying the players are playing for the big prize.

”Two Cup Finals, we hope,” he said.

But he warned, “Tuesday night is going to be very difficult.  Obviously we haven’t been great against Harrow Borough this year and we lost both times and it’s something we’ve got to put right.”

But it’s very hard to beat the same team three times in a season.

”It’s all up to the players.  They’ve got to address Tuesday night like a World Cup Final,” said O’Brien.

”We’ll just set up how we know we should.  We’re organised, we work hard and we’re good on the ball.  When things aren’t going well for us we don’t get frustrated, we stay calm and stay positive.

”Harrow Borough are a very good side with a lot of pace. They work extremely hard and we’ll have to match that and not only match that we have to kick on and get a result.

”Tuesday night is a huge, huge game for the club, for the fans, for the players and for everyone involved and if we can get that out of the way, Saturday, who knows.”

Harrow Borough will come to the cauldron that is Longmead Stadium and will wilt under the pressure cooker – as Tonbridge Angels’ excellent fans will sing to the beat of the drum and roar their heroes towards promotion.

And fans of other great Kent clubs – former players and managers of other great Kent clubs – will attend to prove that Kent is the place to be on night’s like these.

Warrilow and O’Brien are men you want in the trenches with you.  Their hunger and desire for victory is there for everyone to see.

”Hopefully with the fantastic support we’ve been having, I just want Tuesday to come.  All the talk, saying this, that and the other, I just want to get on with it,” said O’Brien on the eve of the big game.

He added: ”I’ve had so many texts from ex-players, I spoke to Mainey (Jon Main) and Ray Powell and all sorts of people who wish us luck, who wants us to do well and want to come to the game. 

Even my old boss (at Dartford) Tony (Burman) wants to come to the game.  I think it will be good for Kent but I just want Tuesday to come and get on with it regardless who is or whose not there.”

But at 7:45pm on Tuesday evening, it’s down to the footballing gods and the heroes in blue to decide the progressive west Kent club’s fate.

”The play-off’s are a lottery and I just hope we have the mixture of everything – luck, skill, determination, work-rate and hopefully that should see us through,” added O’Brien.

”The word I’ve used a lot this season to the boys is regret, it’s a horrible word.

”You don’t want to get into your car with regrets.

”The start we had that’s our biggest regret.  We weren’t firing on all cylinders and we probably missed out on 17-18 points.  If we had that we could have pushed Sutton and we could have won the league.”

But the joy of winning the play-off’s is immense.

Together, we can make it Tonbridge Angels’ year!
 
Visit Tonbridge Angels’ website: www.tonbridgeangels.co.uk

Tonbridge Angels  v  Harrow Borough
Ryman Premier League Play-Off Semi-Final
Tuesday 3^rd May 2011
Kick Off 7:45pm
At Longmead Stadium, Darenth Avenue, Tonbridge, Kent TN10 3JF