High-flying Reds are big Cup draw

ACCRINGTON Stanley manager John Coleman believes his team are one of the glamour ties at this stage of the FA Cup after they were drawn at home to Ebbsfleet United or Cheltenham Town in the second round of the competition.

Stanley progressed to round two after a 1-0 win over Colchester United at the weekend, while Ebbsfleet and Cheltenham will have a replay next week after their initial tie finished in a draw.

Coleman was glad to be drawn at home in the next round, and due to his team’s impressive performances in League One so far this season, he admits they’re one of the most notable teams in the competition until the Premier League and Championship sides join in round three.

“We couldn’t have asked for anything better than a home draw. Every game we play will be tough, people raise their game for the FA Cup, we know that, but you want to be at home so that’s the pleasing aspect,” he told the club’s official website.

“I guess we are one of the glamour ties now at this stage but we have to just take it when it comes and just focus when you have to.”

Stanley’s side against Colchester featured three changes from the team that had played Coventry City in the league the week prior, and Coleman believes that shows the amount of squad depth that is at the club at the moment.

“We’ve got competition for places and because we do play quite a settled side, which is one of my traits as a manager, people could be forgiven for feeling comfortable and like they’re going to be playing every week but that’s not the case,” he said. “We have a settled side because players play well and I don’t believe in messing about with the team just for the sake of doing it.

“Because of the way the transfer window and loan window worked this year, we ended up taking more loans than we would have liked. We’ve got seven and we can only play five, and I really feel for the two lads who miss out because they’re good players in their own right. It’s frustrating.”

It was one of the loan players who made the difference in the FA Cup clash with Colchester, as on-loan Newcastle midfielder Dan Barlaser got the winning goal.

His strike came in the same week that his grandad had sadly passed away, and the 21-year-old dedicated his winning goal to him.

“I am very pleased to score because my grandad died this week so it meant a lot. I told the lads I was going to score for him, and my mum and dad as well, so it’s nice. My mum and dad were here and it’s fate really,” said Barlaser.

“When I got the ball on the edge of the box, I just had a shot. It’s still going in the corner, it’s on target so I am taking it.

“After the first 20 minutes, I felt we ran the game and once we got the goal, I knew we were going to win, I just didn’t know by how many. We had chances, especially in the second half, we just didn’t finish them off. I made my Newcastle debut in the FA Cup against Birmingham and this was my first FA Cup goal.”

Accrington are back in league action this weekend as they welcome fellow play-off hopefuls Barnsley to the Wham Stadium. The Reds are in seventh played heading into the game, while Barnsley are three points above them in fourth position.