Proud Fell hails Trophy triumph
RA MS BOTTOM United jointmanager Mark Fell described his side’s 4-1 victory over Redditch United in the FA Trophy as one of his proudest moments in football.
The Rams pulled off the upset at the Harry Williams Riverside Stadium to knock out the Southern League Premier Division side and move into the third qualifying round of the competition.
Fell was delighted with the triumph, and paid tribute to the players for their performance.
“We’re all made up. The win is right up there with anything I’ve achieved in football,” he said. “We looked at the game and thought it would be tough as it was a team from the division above, but we knew we had a chance.
“They weren’t in form and once the game was moved from Saturday to Tuesday, it definitely gave us a better chance.
“They didn’t turn up until around 8pm when it was meant to be a 7.45pm kick-off, but I think that impeded us rather than made a difference to them as our lads were waiting around and getting agitated.
“They started better but we have a good attacking threat and every time we went forward we looked like we would score.
“It was a fantastic night for the club and the furthest we have ever been in the FA Trophy, so now we’ve got a great tie in the next round.”
Ramsbottom earned themselves a match against Telford in the next round, and Fell says his team will have no fear.
“It’s a bonus game for us against Telford as all the pressure will be on them and we have nothing to lose,” he said.
“They will be odds on favourites but so were Redditch, so hopefully a big crowd can come down and it will be an unbelievable occasion if we win.”
Before the FA Trophy game, Ramsbottom must now turn their attention back to league action as they host Hyde United this weekend, and Fell is urging his team to pick up all three points so that
“We have to beat Hyde. We’re on a good run of form at the moment but we will undo all of our hard work if we lose,” he said.
“We have two games in hand on some of the teams around us so we have got to get points from both, otherwise it can start to become a big mountain to climb mentally.”
Meanwhile, Ramsbottom have confirmed a further month’s extension for Blackburn Rovers defender Josh Askew.
‘The win is right up there with anything I’ve achieved in football’