Pic: Andy Nunn
BROMSGROVE SPORTING boss Paul Smith hopes doing his extra homework again will pay dividends in front of a bumper crowd on Sunday.
Step 6 Sporting, who saw off Western League leaders Bristol Manor Farm in front of almost 1,500 at the Victoria Ground in the last round, have sold 3,000 quarter-final tickets.
They face another Western League outfit in Buckland Athletic and Smith made the 320-mile round trip to Devon to watch their upcoming opponents beat Cadbury Heath 3-0 last Tuesday.
“Despite playing Sun Sports and Bristol Manor Farm from Step 5 in the past two rounds, I felt we were the better team in both games,” Smith told The NLP.
“I drove down on Tuesday night to watch Buckland, I like getting a heads up on sides we won't have faced before.
“I went down to Bristol to watch Manor Farm and Watford to look at Sun Sports before we played them and it helped.
“Everyone at the club is working hard and we don't fear anybody – if we keep our feet on the ground we've got a good shot at this.”
Despite being a Step 6 club, the Rouslers' unbeaten record in the Midland League Division One suggests they are more than capable of holding their own against higher level opposition.
Sporting, formed in 2009 as Bromsgrove Rovers slipped towards extinction, are finally bringing the good times back to the Worcestershire town.
“There were a lot of fans who said ‘I'm finished with football' when Rovers went,” Smith added. “There were some that didn't want to come and watch Sporting but over the past few games, I've been told that there were some old faces back from the old Rovers days – the Vase run has captured the town.
“The fans have been outstanding since I took over at the club – hopefully we can put in another top performance in front of a brilliant crowd.”
