Saturday's FA Cup tie at Dartford is a massive day for Bromley Football Club, says Mark Goldberg

BROMLEY manager Mark Goldberg says his side owe everybody a performance in a winner-takes-all FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round showdown at Dartford on Saturday, writes Stephen McCartney.


Goldberg, who is now in his third spell managing the Hayes Lane club, has twice guided the club into the First Round, playing Gillingham (2006) and Colchester United three years’ later.

The Lillywhites lost their five-match unbeaten run when they were defeated by ten-man Dover Athletic at Hayes Lane last night.

In-form striker Donovan Simmonds, who later went off injured with a twisted ankle, scored the only goal of the game inside the opening four minutes.

And it’s conceding early goals that is causing Goldberg a headache in recent weeks and if his side are to progress through to the First Round then Bromley cannot afford to make any mistakes against Tony Burman’s high-flyers.

Dartford, who reached the First Round last season, going down 4-0 in a replay on a freezing cold night at Port Vale last November after the League Two club snatched a last-gasp equaliser at Princes Park, are in third place in the Blue Square Bet South table with 29 points from 14 games, whilst Bromley slipped down to fourteenth with eighteen points.

“It’s massive for us.  It’s important that we bounce back,” said Goldberg.

“At this stage of the season the belief of the side has to be there that we are capable of bouncing back from games like that.

“As much as it’s a really important game, being The FA Cup, it’s just as important for us to get our confidence back because as a young side confidence is everything.”

Bromley suffered a 4-1 defeat to Dartford at Princes Park in the Kent Senior Cup Final last May and went down to a 3-1 defeat in a Blue Square Bet South game earlier in the season.

Goldberg said: “We do have an idea on how we want to set out on Saturday, but after last night I may be doing some more thinking!

“There’s no doubt believing we can go there on Saturday and win but we also know how difficult an opposition Dartford are but on our day we are capable of beating any side and we’ll show it again!

“We owe Dartford a response,” added Goldberg.  “We owe our fans certainly a response following the last couple of occasions but I thought when we lost 3-1 with fifteen minutes to go we were very much in the game so hopefully we’ve added since the last game at Dartford and we feel we’re going there stronger than before.”

When asked what he’s going to tell his troops ahead of the big kick-off at Dartford, Goldberg replied, “Not to conceded in the first 25 seconds of the game, hopefully, and hopefully extend that longer than they have done so far this season.

“We’ve got to cut out those early mistakes and cut out those early goals and we have to go out there with more discipline and work ourselves into the game but without conceding first.

“Saturday is a massive game for Bromley Football Club, a massive game for everybody involved from the management team, players’, staff, fans and commercially the chairman will want us winning that game or at least be in that draw but even more so the morale of the side grows during the season when you’re still in The FA Cup.

“I think it will be an important confidence booster for us as well.”

And when asked what a run in The FA Cup will do on a personal note, Goldberg added: “It’s an opportunity for a manager to build on his track record and I’ve been there twice in the First Round and I certainly want to make it three and I want to see how far we can go.

“I believe we’ve got a big future in the game and we’re hoping Saturday is just a stepping stone.”

Visit Bromley’s website: www.bromleyfc.net

Dartford   v  Bromley
The FA Cup with Budweiser Fourth Qualifying Round
Saturday 29^th October 2011
Kick Off 3:00pm
At Princes Park Stadium, Grassbanks, Darenth Road, Dartford, Kent DA1 1RT