Tooting's Beard eyes FA Trophy repeat (From Surrey Comet)

Tooting's Beard eyes FA Trophy repeat

2:25pm Monday 12th July 2010 in

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Tooting & Mitcham boss Mark Beard has admitted his men will have to do it the hard way if they are to emulate his own achievements in the FA Trophy this season.

Beard lift the cup with Stevenage Borough in 2007 thanks to a 3-2 win over Kidderminster Harriers in front of nearly 53,262 fans, to become the first team to win a competitive final at the new Wembley Stadium.

The Terrors were this week drawn against Ryman League Premier Division favourites Sutton United in the first qualifying round of the Trophy in October.

The manager reckons it is the toughest draw his side could have faced, but says it is the sort of game they are going to have to win if they want to go deep into the competition.

“I think their budget is about three times ours and they are probably favourites to win the league. Budgets don’t win leagues though,” he said.

“This is probably the hardest team we could have faced at this stage, but you have got to beat the best teams if you are going to go a long way in this competition.

“They will fancy their chances, but so will we.

“It is a great competition and to win it Wembley was a great feeling, especially when we came back from 2-0 down. There were officially 53,000 there, but I reckon it was closer to 60,000.

“It is a memory that stays with you.”