CRAIG HAILS AMBER UNITY
SAT in the stand, emotionally drained after watching his Cheshunt side beat Bishop’s Stortford with a 90th-minute winner, Craig Edwards reaches for a picture on his phone.
“Someone sent this to me, amazing this is,” Edwards says. “This is March 5, if you look at us there a month-and-a-half ago we are 16 points off Folkestone and ten points off of Lewes.
“We finished six points in front of Lewes so we made 16 points on them and 20 points on Folkestone.
“We were second when we played St Albans in the FA Trophy and I was asked if it would have an adverse effect.
“I said no chance but that was our one bad run and in five games we lost four and went to tenth.
“So we’d got to what I thought was the playoffs and then we had to do it again. The character it takes to turn that around and go again, to do that has been amazing.”
That character has been evident all season, not least the semi-final.
The Ambersbeat Step 2 St Albans and Chelmsford City on their way to the FA Trophy fifth round this season where they were narrowly beaten away by National League leaders Stockport County.
No wonder the former Grays Athletic and Billericay Town boss is so pleased with his team.
“When we took over three seasons ago, albeit two of them (disrupted), they were bottom of Division One,” Edwards said.
“Now we’re one game from the National League. It’s been an incredible journey for us.
“It’s a fantastic club. It’s probably been the most enatmosphere joyable season I’ve ever had in football – and I’ve been in it a long time.
“But it’s not finished yet. We’ve got one massive, big game to go.”
Edwards says he’s had some great supporters in his long managerial career but he’s not seen a connection quite like this one.
“It’s the people that own the club, the people who run the club, the helpers, the supporters,” he smiles.
“I’ve been at a lot of clubs with great support but I’ve never been at a club that are so together.
“From the volunteers, the supporters, the directors, the players – you can see it and it’s absolutely amazing. It would be wonderful if we can take them into the National League. “I said before the game, any of the four teams in the semi-finals could be fancied to go up.
“I know it will be a great over there.
“They’re good people at Hornchurch and I’m sure it will be a cracking game on Bank Holiday Monday.
“I was supposed to be going away with the whole family on Sunday evening – so that ain’t happening!”
It’s a win each this season between the two finalists.
“Like us, they are battled hardened,” Edwards says.
“They obviously won the Trophy last year which shows they’re good in one-off games.
“In the Trophy we beat Chelmsford, St Albans, we beat Bishop’s Stortford. So we’re very good in one-off games.
“It should be a cracking game.
“And the best thing of all? It’s five minutes from my house!”