“The fans were brilliant, they spurred us on”
Those were the words flowing out of the returning Rowan Liburd’s mouth after his first action since the win at Staveley Miners Welfare two months ago.
The striker has had a frustrating period watching on from the sidelines but is looking forward to more games in the coming weeks starting with the visit of Spennymoor Town on Saturday.
“To be fair I think all of the boys put in a great shift today, we went 4-0 up which is pretty impressive especially considering the opposition. It was just a really a good game, one that you will remember for a really long time.”
Liburd however struggled watching the final few minutes, with Cambridge closing in on an equaliser “I was on the bench and I couldn’t watch, I had my jacket over my face it felt sickening. The boys dug deep and we saw the result out.”
Speaking of his recovery Rowan was full of praise for the Backroom Team “When you are injured for a long time you have to stay as mentally strong as possible, the staff and all the medical team really looked after me. Its been good to come back and being involved in a win is even better.”
He had one more comment to add about the support shown on Sunday “It was fantastic, everyone said when we got inside the fans were brilliant, they were fantastic today.”
Cliff Moyo was voted by sponsors Wetherby Whaler as their Man of the Match on Sunday and he summed the game up “It’s crazy but I think we deserved it, it was a very good performance from the lads and we matched them fitness wise. Even though people had outstanding performances I think every player was man of the match.”
When asked about his goal the full back said “No, of course I didn’t mean it but it looked good! So I will claim it, it is nice to get on the scoresheet and I got an assist as well, it is something that I am trying to bring into my game a bit more.”
Speaking about the tight bond within the squad Moyo added “It is all coming from the management, they have brought in good lads and good people, we are in it together until the end.”
Moyo ended by talking about the style of play Russ O’Neill and Marcus Bignot are trying to implement “There are lads in here who have been in the league or at least the league above, we have got the ability, we stepped up to a lot of the Football League teams in pre-season. Football League teams play similar football to what we want to play, we worked hard in training preparing for this game and it paid off.”
Arguably scoring the goal of the round Will Hatfield did not enjoy the final few minutes “Yes it is incredible, it was the worse twenty minutes I have ever been involved in on a football pitch. To get through is the main thing. We are absolutely delighted, you can tell there is a real buzz, it is just the magic of the FA Cup and that is what it is all about.”
Speaking about his strike the midfielder added “It is one of them, it fell to me nicely on the edge of the box, I just knew I had to trust my ability, I have been scoring a few in training like that so for one to go in in a match I am delighted. I am due one really, I have had a few chances in the league which I should have taken. To get it today in this kind of match and atmosphere it is amazing!”
“I am just delighted, buzzing and happy and looking forward to the next round.”
Will is the current longest serving Lion and he always enjoys the fans singing his name on a matchday “It means so much to me I have been here a long time now, we have had some really good moments in staying up on the final game of the season but this is right up there.”
Winger Kaine Felix added his thoughts on a memorable day at Nethermoor “It was an unbelievable game, it kind of felt were coasting until late on when they got the goals. We played well, rose to the challenge and got the result that we wanted.”
He was also delighted to notch another strike following frustration in the previous two games “It was massive to be fair, I have been picking up a bit of form recently which I have been happy with, I have hit the crossbar and post three times in the last couple of games. To actually bag a goal today I am happy with that especially in the circumstances today I am happy that I can get a goal for the team.”
He also spoke about the squad and the great spirit and togetherness on show “We seem to be a set of brothers in the changing room and on the pitch, whatever comes our way we will try and rise to the challenge giving it our best shot for the fans and the club.”
Felix also wanted to thank the supporters “The fans were great and we thrived off of it.”
Looking ahead to Saturday Kaine said “It is always good to play a league side and get a win, it gives us confidence to know we can beat a league side so going into a National League North game we can go into that full of confidence and get the win for the supporters because the club deserve it.”
