Crowe gutted after Brig exit FA Cup

Bamber Bridge boss Neil Crowe is “gutted” that his side missed out on a place in the First Round proper of the FA Cup.
On-loan Blackburn Rovers player Sam Joel on the ball for BrigOn-loan Blackburn Rovers player Sam Joel on the ball for Brig
On-loan Blackburn Rovers player Sam Joel on the ball for Brig

Brig were knocked out of the fourth qualifying round by Brackley Town on Saturday.

Town triumphed 3-0 and Crowe said a lack of cutting edge due to the absence of ex-PNE, Blackpool and Southampton striker Brett Ormerod and wing wizard Alistair Waddecar cost them on the day.

He said: “We missed the cutting edge up front.

“We missed Brett and Ali.

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“They were a strong and organised side. They caught us on the break and the only difference between the two sides was the cutting edge. I’m gutted to be honest. I thought it was a good chance for us to get through but it wasn’t to be.”

And Crowe said the scoreline was harsh on his men and hailed them for giving their all.

He said: “The lads that played gave everything. It was not a three goal scoreline. We spent the last 15 minutes down to ten men as we had used all our substitutes and Darren Green got injured so we were forced to play with ten. It has been a great journey, to get to the fourth round of qualifying is an achievement - I’m proud of the lads for getting that far.”

Brig host Ossett Albion at the Sir Tom Finney Stadium on Saturday in the NPL First Division North and Crowe revealed star midfielder Waddecar is having a scan on his injured knee later this week.

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He said: “It is five weeks now and we still do not know what is properly wrong with his knee. He is due to get a scan this week as it is not getting any better at the moment. We are about five or so fixtures behind some teams in the league and if we win our games in hand we should be back in the mix. We are hoping to bounce back on Saturday.”