I still believe in the magic of The FA Cup, says Erith & Belvedere boss Micky Collins

ERITH & BELVEDERE manager Micky Collins says his side are not the team to beat in the Kent League this season.

The Deres are one of four clubs that have 100% records in the opening week of the season after they opened their campaign with a 3-0 win at newly-promoted Rochester United, before humiliating a woeful Corinthian side 4-2 at Park View Road last night.

Erith & Belvedere should have racked up a cricket score against a Corinthian side that finished in seventh-place and reached the Kent League Cup Final last season.

Corinthian boss Tony Sitford, 73, heavily criticised his players after their embarrassing performance at Park View Road last night.

Deal Town, Erith Town and VCD Athletic have already occupied the top spot during the first week of the season and Erith & Belvedere, who finished as runners-up last season, currently lie in second place.

When asked whether his team are the one to beat this term, Collins replied, “No! I don’t think so!  I don’t believe that at all. I think there will be four or five teams that are going to be up there. My money, if I was a betting man, at the moment would certainly be on VCD without a doubt.

“I think Ricky Bennett’s looked at it for a couple of seasons now and he knows where to be with it but that’s one from six.  It’s going to be a tough, tough season.”

A surprise package at the moment are Lordswood, who welcome Erith & Belvedere to Martyn Grove on Saturday to contest a FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round tie.

Lordswood have won both of their games after defeating Corinthian 2-1 at the weekend, before defeating Deal Town 3-0 last night.

Lordswood completed the double over the Deres last season.  Jason Lillis’ side won 3-1 in the home game last October and came away from Park View Road with a 3-2 victory a week before Christmas.

Collins said: “Very tough game.  They beat us twice last year and deservedly so.

“We never performed at our place and they came up here and stole it from us in the last few minutes and they deserved it.

“Those six points came close to costing us the title.

“They’re a good side. Me and Jason were together at Gillingham.  He sets his teams out, they’re solid.  They’ve brought in a few players this year, which is a credit to them and that will be a tough game, a very, very tough game.

“FA Cup, anywhere’s a tough game.  There’s a bit of magic about it.  I still believe in the magic of the FA Cup.

“We’ll go there and set our stall out a certain way and try and get a result.”

With £1,000 up for grabs for the winner of Saturday’s tie, Collins knows the importance of an extended run in the magical competition.

He said: “As I’ve always said it should be the FA Chairman’s Cup. The FA Cup brings in the money into the club to make us roll, keep us moving forward.

“Obviously we want to go as far as we can and get a plum tie. We’ve looked at the draw of the two games prior, which could be a big one against Carshalton.  Of course we want to go as far as we can in that, but that’s like every competition. You want to win every game you play in. You never turn up and take it half-hearted.”

Collins has looked at last season’s Kent League champions Herne Bay and has signed up a big squad to tackle the trials and tribulations of a Kent League campaign.

He said: “Very pleased with the first two games. We had six first team players missing last night and we’re nowhere near a full-strength!  Hopefully Saturday we’ll have a few back.  As I said in my managers column on our website you have to have a big squad to win this league.  Players’ get injured. It’s a tough, tough league.

“Herne Bay proved that last year and Simon (Halsey) done a fantastic job with the numbers of players he had.  All credit to them for going up and the teams that have done it before.

“If we want to consider ourselves being anywhere near a title challenge we have to have the numbers on a Tuesday when we’re going down to the Woodstock’s and your Deal Town’s that we’ve got the numbers around us to do it. 

“This year we’ve signed enough players.  The hardest bit is to try to maintain 22 players’ happiness.  It’s not going to be easy. I always wanted to play as a player. I do believe that the players’ we have here believe in what we are doing.”

Meanwhile, former Erith & Belvedere striker, Chris Dickson, 27, who played for the club between 2004-2006, when he scored 35 goals in 75 appearances, continued his goalscoring form when he scored 37 goals in 41 games for Dulwich Hamlet in the Ryman League.  He was rewarded when Charlton Athletic paid £35,000 to take him to The Valley.  After scoring 2 goals in sixteen appearances for them, he then went out on loan to Crewe Alexandra, Gillingham (twice) and Bristol Rovers, before going abroad to play for Nea Salamis Famagusta, before signing for his current club AEL Limassol in Cyprus.

Back in May they won the Cypriot League championship for the first time since 1968 and last month they played a Champions League Second Qualifying Round tie against Lingfield of Northern Ireland. 

Dickson thus became the first player to go from the Deres to the Champions League!  The Plumstead born striker made the first goal and scored the second in a 3-0 win and the return leg was a goal-less draw.

Limassol beat Partizan Belgrade in the third qualifying round 1-0 last week.

Visit Erith & Belvedere’s website: www.erithandbelvedere-fc.co.uk

Lordswood  v  Erith & Belvedere
The FA Cup with Budweiser Extra Preliminary Round
Saturday 11^th August 2012
Kick Off 3:00pm
at Martyn Grove, Northdane Way, Walderslade, Chatham, Kent ME5 8YE