Carlsberg FA Trophy 3rd Qualifying Round

Saturday 22.11.08

'My boys were all heroes'

By Anthony Marshall »

Supermarine boss Mark Collier asked for a hero to emerge from his side’s FA Trophy third qualifying round clash against Bromley, and he got his wish - with 11 of them! Blue Square South outfit Bromley were put to the sword by Marine as Nick Stanley grabbed the only goal of the game midway through the first half. And Collier was full of praise for his underdogs, insisting any neutrals in the crowd at Hunts Copse would have struggled to identify which side was plying their trade at a higher level. “It was a great win and a very pleasing performance as well,” said the manager. “The only disappointment we had was that we could have scored more goals.

“But to take on a Conference South side who are in particularly good form and beat them is fantastic, not only for the players but for everyone at the club. “We asked for a hero to come out of our side, but it turns out we got 11 of them instead. “We wanted some big performances from the players and we got just that from each and every one of them. “I think in the end Bromley didn’t create to much and I was a little bit surprised at that. “We had the bulk of the ball and the bulk of the play and dealt comfortably with everything they had. I was delighted with the lads.”

Stanley broke the deadlock on 23 minutes when Kyle Lapham’s long throw was flicked on by Alan Griffin, but fumbled by Bromley keeper Gareth Williams, and the wide man took advantage to fire home. Chris Taylor, Mark Draycott and Stanley all spurned good chances to extend Marine’s advantage, and the visitors suffered another blow in the second half when Mark Corneille was given a straight red car for a two-footed lunge on Stanley.

Marine’s victory means they progress to the first round proper, which sees the inclusion of Blue Square Premier sides, and with the draw taking place at lunchtime Monday, Collier admits he would fancy taking on another big side. “Ideally we want to have a home draw, but then again we could end up away at someone like Oxford United which would be a decent money-spinner for the club. “We could either get a very big draw against a big side, or one which gives us a more realistic chance of progressing. “But over the last couple of years we’ve proved that we can play and perform against teams from higher levels, so who’s to say we couldn’t again?”