“I know how tough that game’s going to be”: Lancaster City boss anticipates a challenging FA Cup trip
Lancaster City are back in FA Cup action this weekend.
Jimmy Marshall has warned his players they cannot take victory for granted as Lancaster City’s focus this weekend switches back to the FA Cup.
The Dolly Blues travel to Bradford (Park Avenue) on Saturday when the teams meet in the second qualifying round.
Marshall’s players do so, looking to atone for last weekend’s 2-0 league defeat against Curzon Ashton at Giant Axe.
It left them 16th in the NPL Premier table, while their opponents are second in the East division after Tuesday’s 2-2 draw against Beverley Town.
Speaking after Saturday’s defeat, Marshall told club media: “I don’t know if our fans know much about Bradford (Park Avenue) but they’ve got a good squad, good resources.
“We know that’s not going to be an easy game, we know that it’s going to be a really tough game.
“We’re the higher-placed team; we’re step three, they’re step four - (it) doesn’t make it any easier.
“I know how tough that game’s going to be and these lads will be under illusions how tough it is because I’ll let them know.
“We’ll do all of our homework on them this week. We know our away form’s good so hopefully, in the first instance, we can have another good performance on the road - and hopefully get a little bit of an FA Cup run going.
“It’s a tough game but we’ll be good for it, we’ll get prepped in the best way we can this week and make sure we go there in the best shape we can - hopefully to get the right result.”
City make the journey after suffering consecutive league defeats at Giant Axe, with Curzon’s victory following Workington’s success on August Bank Holiday Monday.
Brad Holmes and Alex Curran scored deep into the second half for Curzon, with the first goal coming from a defensive mistake and the second in added time.
Marshall added: “The performance on the whole was a little bit better because we have been struggling here, we’re a different side away from home.
“I didn’t think it was good enough, we’re better than that and I’ve told them that.
“We need to be better in all aspects, so it’s a lot of food for thought going forward.”
Elsewhere, City have been drawn away to NPL Premier leaders Cleethorpes Town in the FA Trophy’s third qualifying round.
That match will be played a week on Saturday, September 26 (3pm).