Macc legend’s mum says omens are good
James thinks the atmosphere in that game will have helped his side ahead of their match at Wembley.
“It was a good game against Lincoln and those atmospheres do make you play slightly better,” he said.
“Naturally it gets you going for the game and I thought we performed really well against Lincoln.
“We have shown what we can do against some of the best teams in the league so we’ve got to go and reproduce that.”
The FA Trophy final comes three weeks after the conclusion of the National League season, and James admits that the break without football is not ideal ahead of the match.
“It’s been difficult really. Usually at the end of the season you can switch off mentally a bit, but not for us,” he said.
“We had a week to relax and regroup and then two weeks getting back at it and into the mind-set to go again.
“We’ve got to get the right intensity to make sure we’re at our best.
“The lads had a bit of a break from each other and I think we were all secretly delighted, but in all seriousness we’ve had a lot of long trips this season and it is made a lot easier as there are some funny characters in the squad.” THE mother of Silkmen legend Richard Butcher believes the number 21 could help Macclesfield to victory in the FA Trophy.
Gail Butcher, 53, thinks her son’s shirt number, which was retired by Macclesfield Town in his memory after his sudden death in 2011, combined with the fact it has been 21 years since the club’s last appearance at Wembley and the date of this year’s final, May 21, is ‘a good omen’.
Gail, who will be cheering on the Silkmen at Wembley, said: “The number 21 is very significant to me because of Richard. It’s special. So whenever it crops up it reminds me of Richard and makes me feel like he’s still with me.
“When Macclesfield got into the final my friend, Trevor Stokes, pointed out that it had been 21 years since Macclesfield’s last trip to Wembley and the final will be May 21.
“It’s also worth adding that the squad number for Scott Fenwick, who scored the winning goal for York against the other semifinalists Lincoln, is 21.
“I like to think all those occurrences will be a good omen for Macclesfield.
“I’ll be there and I like to think Richard will be too, maybe helping the lads get that winning goal.”
Richard was just 29 when he died suddenly of a heart condition. Since then the Silkmen have honoured his memory in various ways, most recently by rebooting its youth set-up with Project 21 and renaming the old Corner Flag Bar as Butch’s Bar.
Both projects were funded by the Richard Butcher Memorial Trust, which is run by Gail.
Meanwhile, Macc are urging fans planning to take the trip down to Wembley to get in touch about supporter coaches.
It estimates transport on these coaches will be around £35 for return travel. VIP coaches, which have table and toilet facilities, will be priced at about £60 per person.
Visit the club’s website mtfc.co.uk for details.
Tickets for the final, which also give you access to the FA Vase final, are available from ticketingcontent.thefa. com and cost £1 for children, £10 concessions and £25 adults.