I believe The FA Vase is big for any club as it helps to promote your club the further you go, says Snodland Town boss Luke Wallond

SNODLAND TOWN manager Luke Wallond says he hopes his experienced players will see them through against fellow Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division rivals Stansfeld in The FA Vase First Round tomorrow.

The two sides met at Potyn’s on the opening day of the season, with Snodland Town marking their debut in the ninth-tier with a comfortable 2-0 win.

Snodland Town go into the Vase tussle sitting in seventh-place in the table, having banked five wins and three draws from 11 games, while Billy Shinners’ men are third-from-bottom with six points from their 12 league outings.

“I’m personally looking forward to it, as I imagine all manager’s will be.  Every tie in this competition is a tough one whoever you play, as it’s a one-off game and it’s who plays the best on the day,” said Wallond.

“Our side has a fair bit of experience in getting far in the Vase and I hope that will help us through on the day.

“I believe The FA Vase is big for any club as it helps to promote your club the further you go.

“We have a good fan base and they are always fully behind us, so it would be great to get as far as we can, as it gives everyone potentially a new ground to visit and a great day out.

When asked about what he knows about Shinners’ side, one that has claimed just the one league win this season, Wallond replied: “Not a great amount to be honest.  As they have been in the SCEFL Prem a bit longer than us and as you will see from my squad, you always need to improve to stay at that level.

“Stansfeld have always been a good side when I’ve played them in the past and I expect tomorrow to be no different.”

Reflecting on their start to life in the ninth-tier of English football, Wallond said:  “I think for our first season in the Prem we can’t complain with where we are right now.  We possibly could have gained a few more points up until this point but that’s how it goes.

“We will be trying to sneak into the play-offs if we can by the end of the season but there’s a long way to go and all the sides in the league are of good quality, so it will be down to us to be consistent week-in-week-out if we want to achieve that.”

Snodland Town  v  Stansfeld
The Isuzu FA Vase First Round
Saturday 21 October 2023
Kick Off 3:00pm
at Potyn's Sports Ground, Paddlesworth Road, Snodland, Kent ME6 5DP