Ashington FC joint-manager and former England cricket hero Steve Harmison thinks that South Shields are a shoo-in for the FA Vase title.
Shields, who are favourites by a distance, face off against Cleethorpes Town at Wembley on Sunday. Harmison believes that the South Tyneside-based side are good enough to win the Vase and then go on up through the leagues.
“For me the best non-league team at that level has got to the Vase final and I’ve got no doubt they’ll win it,” he told the Chronicle.
“When they go through the leagues I hope they keep going and going because this area needs that.
“Their ground is going forward, their team and management staff are going forward, their infrastructure and what they’re trying to do is going forward. They’re geared up to go all the way and I hope they do.
“I’ve known Graham [Fenton] for a few years now and I’d like to think he deserves a job higher up at a professional level. I’d like to think in three or four years time that could be with South Shields because they’ve got everything in their armoury.”
Harmison, who now manages Ashington alongside former Blyth Spartans boss Tom Wade, came up against The Mariners twice this season. He believes that they’ve made great strides over the course of the campaign and this form should see them lift the trophy on Sunday.
“We played them twice last year,” he said. “We caught them very early in the season when they were still trying to find their way and a lot of people were finding their way into the Northern League.
“We gave them a game but they scored two goals in the last five minutes to beat us 3-2.
“We played them again at the end of the season to win the league. They were chalk-and-cheese sides.
“The Fenton/Picton factor had worked its magic by the end but we were quite happy at the start of the season. In the last game, the first 25 minutes they would have given anybody a game even in leagues higher up.”
Shields have sold a mammoth 13,000 tickets for Sunday’s clash and Harmison believes the big occasion will favour Shields’ experienced players.
“Wembley will suit their big players.” He continued. “They’ve got some experienced players and the likes of Arca, Shaw and Cogdon through the middle of the side won’t be fazed too much.
“The size of the crowd will probably suit South Shields more than Cleethorpes. There will be a lot of support going down.”
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He was also quick to praise the conduct of Mariners fans, who visited Ashington earlier in the season.
“They had over 1,000 at Ashington and they were well behaved and supported their team. I don’t think you can ask any more than that,” he said. “I hope they win it.”
- Chroniclelive