Hornchurch dare to dream for the Wembley chance of a lifetime

BUNDLES OF FUN: Liam Nash takes the congratulations of his teammates after scoring the winning goal in their 5-4 thriller with
PICTURE: Gavin Ellis/TGS Photo

MARK STIMSON gave his Hornchurch players a little task last weekend. Nothing too arduous like pulling on the running shoes to get some more fitness in the legs as they prepare for their FA Trophy semi-final. The gaffer wanted his Wembley hopefuls to switch on the TV.

“Saturday was the first time we've mentioned it (Wembley) for a couple of weeks,” Stimson says. “It was only because I was watching the news and there were two finals at Wembley last weekend. I said to my boys, ‘If you get the chance over the weekend, have a look on the TV and have a look at that stadium – if that doesn't give you goosebumps, you're in the wrong game'.

“Being fortunate enough to have been there myself, I can try and pass that experience onto them and can say, ‘I can drive you mad if you want and never stop talking about it – you can be the same'.

“It doesn't come round often. We know will be in the same position and they got beat in last season's semi-final. You learn from defeats in big games that, if it comes around again, you don't want the same feeling. We know Notts County are going to be fired up.”

Stimson, of course, has won under the arch. His Stevenage climbed the steps in the first competitive game after the rebuild when they beat in the Trophy.

That made it a hat-trick of wins for Stimson following two triumphs as Grays Athletic boss s to add to his one as a player with .

“I'm a Spurs fan, but that Wembley colour…red…is powerful,” Stimson says. “It's not my colour. But when you walk out, the colour of it just blows your mind. The green pitch stands out even more. Everything about the place is as great as you'd expect.”

The Pitching In Urchins have already knocked out one National League side in . The list of higher league scalps in this remarkable run also includes Tonbridge Angels, , Maidstone United and Darlington.

It's been quite the achievement considering they haven't played a league game since the beginning of November before the season was suspended, and later curtailed.

“You look at the bigger picture and what people are going through where they're stuck in lockdown or haven't been able to see family or friends,” goalkeeper Joe Wright, who saved three penalties in their shootout win over King's Lynn, says. “We are so, so lucky as a group to have that little bit of normality.

“Once we got the approval from the FA to train and prepare, we've been meeting twice-a-week to train and it gives you that normality to life. You get out, you're with your friends.

 goalkeeper Joe Wright
NO ILLUSIONS: Hornchurch boss Mark Stimson

“We've seen it all over the place, it's good for your own health mentally. I don't think it's been a conscious factor that we need to win to carry on playing. But I do think, sub-consciously, it sits in the back of your mind that we are doing this to continue. It's for the love of the game.”

Former Bishop's Stortford, Hendon and Enfield Town stopper Wright echoes the words of Stimson throughout this run – the team spirit is special.

Unthinkable

“On the pitch, if you've got the bond we have, you're playing alongside your mates,” Wright says. “You put everything on the line for the people that matter to you and you care for. You're in it together.

“We're under no illusions a run like this doesn't happen very often. Certainly not at our level and for most of the lads' careers I doubt many will get an opportunity as good as this.

“Being one of the more senior players in the dressing room, I've played a lot of Non- League and the seasons end up racing by. It's not often you get special runs in cups. What bigger prize could you want than to play at one of the best stadiums in the world?

“We've got to keep our feet on the ground. We've got a massive test. We've got a long way to go and a lot to do before we get anywhere near it.

“But you dare yourself to have a look at it because that is the prize. That's why you've got to be at our best and demand the most from yourself and each other.”

Captain Lewwis Spence wouldn't be the first family member to play on the hallowed turf should they pull off the unthinkable in Nottingham on Saturday.

Sister Drew is an FA Cup winner with Chelsea, where she has spent a trophy-laden career that has also brought England caps.

“I will never able to level up with her – she's gone clear!” Spence laughs. “She's got 11 or 12 trophies to her name. She's doing amazingly well, I can only praise her for her achievements.

“Going to watch a family member play at Wembley is a surreal feeling. I remember being a kid and going over the park, setting up goals to play Wembley knockout with your mates. To think we're one game away is quite a strange feeling. There is a lot of work to do. But if you don't believe it, it won't happen.”

Hungry

The game has sentimental meaning to Spence. The 33-yearold made his Crystal Palace debut against Notts County, while he scored for Wycombe Wanderers at Meadow Lane.

WEMBLEY DREAM: Hornchurch's Lewwis Spence
SISTER ACT: Lewwis' sister Drew Spence, left, celebrates winning FA Cup at Wembley

At this stage of his career, he is enjoying every minute of the run with a group of people united behind the dream.

“There are a lot of cogs in the wheel,” Spence says. “Tony Gay (coach) is part of the coaching staff. He gets you going. He's 60-plus, but he'll have a bit of banter for the boys and have everyone it fits of laughter. It's a collective.

“Ultimately it comes down to the club and the gaffer's recruitment. How you keep everyone hungry. At our level of Non-League it's easy to become a bit slack when you're not in full-time.

“The gaffer does an amazing job of keeping everyone hungry. On the flip side, when it's not going well, he lets you know.

“But if you're not involved you're not thinking, ‘Oh, I should be playing'. You think, ‘I've got to earn my right if I get the chance'.”

Spence, who has just welcomed twins Ivy and Marlo to the family with partner Jodie and their four-year-old son Cody, jokes a night away in the hotel will at least allow him some sleep.

For Wright, the run is showing how the margins in Non- League have been closing in recent years.

“I've been playing Non- League since I was about 16,” Wright, 28, says. “I can see, over the years, how the gaps have closed between the levels.

“Now, in modern day life, fitness and looking after yourself is so much more of a thing. People have a lot more knowledge about it and that has benefitted Non-League footballers.

“Where the pros used to train full-time and be much better and fitter, I feel now you've seen it over the years where you get a lot more teams upsetting League One or Two clubs in the FA Cup, for example.

“The gaps are getting smaller. That shows the quality of Non-League. It is getting better and better every year.”

How do you prepare for a big game when you can't play? Spence believes it has its advantages with the example of striker Sam Higgins having time to get fit for the previous round without the pressure of league games. Stimson says striking the right balance isn't easy.

“We've put a little training plan together,” Stimson says. “As much as you want to do, you don't want to do too much in case you pick up any injuries.

Thrive

“Some people said, ‘Should we have a friendly?' I decided not to because I've got quite a few players – like myself, really – who don't understand that word ‘friendly'.

“When the referee blows the whistle, what's a friendly? Are you not going to try? I find it difficult in pre-season! It's a game of football isn't it? A referee is in charge.

“So we've had in-house games. No referee. The boys referee it themselves. If they think it's a foul, we give a foul. If they think someone hasn't been fouled or the ball hasn't gone off the pitch, they just carry on. That's how we've done it.”

Hornchurch will thrive on their underdog tag. Spence laughs about some rival fans belittling them. “We'll be the pub team from Hornchurch, we don't mind,” he says. But he also knows it's about more than that.

“This run has been so important for the fans,” Spence says. “It's not just in the boardroom, the players and the management, but the hope this has given the fans that haven't been able to come to the games.

“We've got a good support for home and away games at Hornchurch. For them to have this to invest in during this period of time where January to now in March has been quite flat for a lot of people.

“To see the victories, the performances, a hell of a lot of goals in certain games! It has given everyone associated with it so much hope.”

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