Hopefully we can make a little bit more history, says Whitstable Town boss Nicky Southall

WHITSTABLE TOWN boss Nicky Southall says he does not want their epic FA Trophy run to end against Hendon on Sunday.

The Oystermen have never played in The FA Trophy First Round before and travel to north-west London aiming to extend their stay in the competition among the big boys of non-league football.

Southall admits his club have not had an easy run in the competition and Sunday’s game will be their seventh game in the competition.

They started with a 5-1 win away to their Kent rivals Sittingbourne in the Preliminary Round, before drawing 2-2 at home to Potters Bar Town, before travelling to Hertfordshire on a Monday night to win the replay 2-1.

Their reward was another Kent derby and a trip to Hythe Town, which finished in a 2-2 draw at Reachfields Stadium, before Southall’s side won the replay 2-1 at The Belmont.

Whitstable Town travelled to Ryman Premier League strugglers Carshalton Athletic in the last round and came back from Colston Avenue with a 2-1 win and Hendon are in eleventh-place in the same division going into Sunday’s game in Harrow.

“Obviously it’s a big game, but every game is a big game isn’t it?” said Southall, whose side are in eighteenth-place in the Ryman League Division One South table.

“We’re not getting carried away. We’ve set a little bit of history so hopefully we can make a little bit more history.”

Southall added: “We haven’t had it easy in this FA Trophy run. We’ve been away quite a lot to teams above us. Carshalton and obviously away to Hendon and we went to Potters Bar over two games, with the replay and Hythe Town, we were drawn away to them and we beat them in a replay.

“It’s been a good journey that’s reinvigorated us in terms of performance wise. If you get on a good run in a cup competition it can enter into the league. Hopefully that’s what it’s doing to us.”

When asked what he is expecting against Gary McCann’s side, Southall said: “I’m expecting a typical Cup tie. There’s a lot on the game. There’s a big reward at the end of the day but we’ve got to go there and give ourselves a chance and stay in the game early on, which I believe you need to do especially away from home anyway.

“You have to set up quite strong and be in control of yourselves and try and get into the game, get a footing in the game and hopefully we can move on from there.”

Southall has done his homework on the Greens, watching their 4-2 home win over Canvey Island in the league.

Southall, who has played at every level of the game from Premier League right the way down to the Ryman League Division One South, said: “I went to see them last Monday against Canvey Island, so I’ve done a little bit of homework, which most managers would do anyhow at this level, so you need to get a heads up and see how their playing and what kind of team that you’re playing against.”

Whitstable Town have banked £12,450 in prize money from their epic FA Trophy run – which has certainly put a smile on the face of chairman Gary Johnson – and the winners of First Round ties will scoop a further £5,000.

Southall said: “All chairmen are happy when there’s money coming in, they’re not very happy when it’s going the other way to be fair.

“But listen, it’s a reward for the club and it puts us on the map, a small club like Whitstable. It’s opened a few eyebrows what you can actually achieve on a very limited budget, I’ve got to say, with a bit of belief, team spirit, camaraderie, whatever you want to call it.

“You can actually push yourself to a different level and hopefully that’s what I’m doing and my players’ are buying into how I want to play football, my philosophies and my experience, what I’ve done over the years. They’ve seemed to grasp it and taking that professionalism on board.”

The Conference Premier elite join The FA Trophy at this stage and Whitstable Town could have been drawn against a Luton Town or Cambridge United – but Hendon is a winnable game for the Kent side.

“That’s what I said – we wanted a blue ribbon tie but if you don’t get a blue ribbon tie you want a tie where you want to give yourselves a chance to get through to the next round,” said Southall.

“I believe Hendon will not be easy but we’ll give them the respect in the world but you’ve got to earn the respect of the other team by putting a good performance in.

“I think we achieved that against Carshalton. Their manager, staff and supporters held their hands up and we were the better team to come from a goal from behind.

“Hendon are a similar type of team. They’re a London based team. It won’t be easy, don’t get me wrong, but I went there on Monday and I’ve seen some avenues where we maybe can exploit so that’s why I’ve done my scouting trips.”

Meanwhile, Sunday’s game is a start of a gruelling nine-game programme in December.

Southall added: “We’ve got a very tough period coming up in December. I think we’ve got more games than anybody because we’re lacking in games in the league because of these cup runs.”

Visit Whitstable Town’s website: www.whitstabletownfc.co.uk

Hendon  v  Whitstable Town

The FA Carlsberg Trophy First Round

Sunday 1 December 2013

Kick Off 3:00pm

At Harrow Borough FC, Earlsmead, Carlyon Avenue, Harrow, Middlesex HA2 8SS