HOLLERAN WILL LET BRAKES OFF FOR FINAL
BUOYANT Leamington can go into their playoff final showdown at AFC Telford full of verve in the eyes of manager Paul Holleran.
A 107th-minute strike from experienced striker Jack Edwards sealed a tireless extra-time semi-final win over Redditch United on Wednesday to set up a trip to New Bucks Head and ensure that one of the two sides relegated from National League North last season will return to Step 2 at the first opportunity.
Holleran, 53, has overseen two prior promotions – one via the playoffs – in his near 15-year spell in charge of the Brakes, and he aims to upset the odds against an expectant home crowd.
“Telford have been the best team in the second half of the season by far, and going into the season we’d have been second-best compared to them in terms of squad balance and depth,” Holleran said.
“It’ll be a great occasion, our players can go there and enjoy it. We’ll go there with a gameplan to win the game.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to be in this position. There was a lot of upheaval and rebuilding over the summer, it’s difficult in terms of recruitment with so many teams in the same area.
“We kept a few of the players on pro deals and added four or five youth to the squad, but after the second game in which we conceded five at Coalville, I knew it was going to be a difficult task this season.
“Unfortunately for both sides after the seasons we’ve had, only one of us can get promoted for all of our efforts.
“Let’s make sure that it’s us celebrating at the final whistle.”
The nature of Wednesday’s semi-final was certainly enough to encourage Leamington fans and neutrals alike that this is a squad capable of battling their way to any outcome.
And while Holleran was first to acknowledge the gritty nature of the game, he was certainly not one to complain come the full-time whistle.
“It was a great occasion to nick a win. I think it’s fair to say it was like a lot of play-off games – it wasn’t a classic,” he added.
“Redditch were on top second half. At first we tried to go through them, then around them, then eventually we brought on Tyrone (Barnett) and went over them. He did a great job in doing that.
“The last four league games prior to that were good to have. We won two of them and they essentially felt like play-off games, in order to make them.
“For both sets of fans, it’s not the quality either side have shown but regardless of result, both clubs can come away proud of the efforts of their players.”