It's about making days like this special, says Tunbridge Wells boss Martin Larkin

TUNBRIDGE WELLS manager Martin Larkin says reaching The FA Carlsberg Vase Final at Wembley Stadium is a realistic aim and not just a dream.


The Kent Hurlimann Football League club welcome Cambridgeshire based side St Ives Town in the Fourth Round at Culverden Stadium on Saturday, with a place in the LAST SIXTEEN at stake for the winner.

“Everyone’s excited about it,” said Larkin.  “The club has been working very hard over the last couple of weeks to make sure we’re ready for it and the players have been doing the same thing.  We’ve had them watched a couple of times and we know what we’re doing.

“We’ve been working on a few things in training and we’ve wrapped it up this week with the game plan of what we want to do and everyone can’t wait for the game to come around.”

St Ives come to Kent sitting in fourth place in the United Counties League table with a record of sixteen wins and one draw from their 23 league outings.

However, their recent run of form has been formidable with 21 wins from their last 24 competitive games.

Larkin, however, knows what to expect.

“Very tough on paper, they’ve got a very good record at the minute. They bring quite a large following with them.  They took 150 to their last Vase game.  They’re a big club and they’re doing well.

“Apart from the weekend (when we lost at home to Sevenoaks Town in the quarter-finals of the Umbro Kent Senior Trophy), when we had quite a few missing from our side, we’ve been on a long unbeaten run so hopefully it will be a good game.

“They’re a big side, they’ve got five or six six-foot plus lads through the spine of the side.  They’ve got a lad up front who has scored a lot of goals, who is very quick.  They’re a good, solid non-league side with a couple of lads who could be playing at a higher level.”

But Larkin added:  “We think we’re the same.   We’ve got a couple of lads in our side who should be playing at a higher level.   If we can make the most of being at home and get at them nice and early it could be quite a very good game hopefully.

“They’ve got quite a large away following, they buy into the Vase and what it’s all about.  When they were at Peacehaven in the last round they took 150 odd so hopefully they’ll do the same (on Saturday).

“They’ve already told us they’ll bring a couple of coaches down.  If we can get our core 180 and add a hundred to that with friends and family we’re looking at close to 500.  If we can get that through the gate there will be a fantastic atmosphere with the noise coming down off the terracing behind the goal.”

When asked how the game will be won or lost on Saturday, Larkin replied, “It’s the team that executes the game plan, that’s week in, week out really.  Everyone has their way of playing.   We have a set core how we like to play and we adapt a couple of things depending on the opposition.

“They’ve got a lad up top (Conor Washington) who we have to deal with because it looks like he’s got a very good record.

“We will have to deal with them from set-pieces as they’re a very big side but we’ve got a way of playing and we’re very confident in our players that we’ve got and the way we go about things.

“If we execute that we’ll cause them a lot of problems.”

The march to the Wembley arch is very realistic aim for Tunbridge Wells and for their Kent League rivals Herne Bay, who travel to Northern League side Newcastle Benfield.

“I think the whole point of being in this competition is to do that,” added Larkin. 

“Everyone dreams about Wembley and that kind of thing, that’s for the FA Cup.   In the FA Cup you dream about Wembley but in the Vase it’s a reality.  You’re not going to play at team from a higher league than you, so there’s no need to not think about it.

“It’s about making days like this special when you’ve got that target there.  I spoke to Tommy Sampson (who won The FA Vase as Deal Town's manager at the old Wembley Stadium in 2000), about it the other week and he said when you have that target there, then why not?

“Tommy’s been very good for the last couple of years’ to be fair.  He always gives me a call in the week of the Vase to wish us luck.

“What Deal did is an inspiration to all Kent League teams.  It’s a shame we can’t get Tommy down to our ground for our game on Saturday and when he wishes you luck its nice when a manager does that as we should be wishing each other luck and looking after each other.”

Herne Bay manager Simon Halsey last night wished Larkin and everyone at Tunbridge Wells good luck and would like both Kent League clubs to progress into the last sixteen of such a prestigious competition, but to avoid eachother in the next round!
 
It would be even better if the pair of them could go all the way to the Wembley Final!

Larkin said: “They’ve got a great trip up to Newcastle, our lot are quite jealous about that.  Herne Bay are an exceptional side and we wish them all the best of luck.”

Visit Tunbridge Wells’ website: www.tunbridgewellsfc.co.uk  

Tunbridge Wells  v  St Ives Town
The FA Carlsberg Vase Fourth Round
Saturday 21^st January 2012
Kick Off 3:00pm
at Culverden Stadium, Culverden Down, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN4 9SG