With Tunbridge Wells’ FA Vase Final now less that 48 hours away, our exclusive series of interviews with members of the squad has caught up with the man who’s goals have been crucial to Martin Larkin’s side March to the Arch – Andy Irvine.

Andy began by reflecting on the time since the club qualified for their first time in their history. “The three weeks since the Semi Final have just flown by,” he said. “It only seems like yesterday that we were on the coach on the way back… and now it’s only two days away – its unreal!”

“Its been something that we’ve all been talking about on the way to the games that we’ve been playing since the Semi Final, and as much as we tried to focus on the League which we wanted to carry on the momentum that we built up going into the Final.”

“But to do that would have meant putting Wembley out of our minds – but really playing at the level we do reaching Wembley is a hell of an achievement which shouldn’t really leave us, and we’ve been waiting for the day from the day the run started. It’s a boyhood dream and it really is an amazing feeling!”

“When we started out at the beginning of the season, we “only” had aspirations for the League – to have a good Cup run too is phenominal – to have it in the Vase, a national competition, is unreal, and what has come with it has been amazing.”

“It’s been a small slice of what the big time players get – it’s been great. Every time we’ve played since getting through the support has been fantastic – Monday night’s, Tuesday night’s, Thursday night’s normally crowds of 30 or 40 that would turn up to Kent League games have grown such is our following now.”

Andy’s Dad Alan also played for the club nearly thirty years ago. Andy admitted. “My Dad was genuinely shocked when I joined the club as he played for them in the 1980’s being involved in the squad that won the Kent League which ironically was the last Trophy the club won before we won the Kent Senior Trophy last month.”

“And so for me to win that after he won the last one was a bit strange to be honest as we never expected that to happen. He was at the Shildon away game and you could see what it meant to him as a Tunbridge Wells ex player as well as supporter and father to a player now it was pretty special!”

It’s often been said that there’s a special buzz that follows a side on an adventure such as the Wells’ – a fact that Andy agrees with. “Its been amazing and has given me a lift going into every tie that I’ve had that on my side.”

“My touch could desert me and a few other things could go against me but I’ve got that feeling that it’s still going to happen and getting the goal that knocked Dunstun the holders out, and then following it up goals against Larkhall and at Shildon were probably the three most important goals that I’ve scored as they were at stages in the games where they could have quite easily gone the other way. And the feeling that it brings to the other players and myself is amazing – it’s been phenominal as each goal means so very much!”

“There have been times when we’ve rode our luck definitely! Larkhall – the second time we went behind to be 3-2 down and they’d scored in the 70’s minute wise and I looked at Martin and he had his hands on his hips.”

“The strength that we showed that day to come back again and again was a big feat, but then to get the equaliser which got us extra time and then have Jack Harris to score a wonderful winner in the dying seconds was really amazing!”

“And of course being three nil down at Shildon in the second leg, the writing was on the wall. Scoring there was an amazing feeling, and a really special experience.”

Andy actually left the Culvenden last summer to try his hand at a higher level. “I went to Herne Bay at the start of the season with Martin’s blessing. I’m 26 and haven’t played at that standard before and the season I had last year barring a bit of injury, he felt that I was carrying a bit of momentum with me and it felt like it was something that I had to try – something that I told Martin and that I’d regret it if I didn’t give it a go and it didn’t take me long after a long spell on the bench at Herne Bay.”

“I got a few goals there but didn’t really feel that I fitted into the way that the manager (Simon Halsey) wanted to play… I even considered calling it a day actually playing football for a while as I lost the love of the game to be honest!”

“But I got a call from Martin after he found out that I’d left Herne Bay keen to bring me back to the club and after one training session, I felt like I had never been away as the banter started up again almost immediately – it was like I never left! Then it was just a case of getting the goals again and getting back out there on the pitch.”

“Martin is a great guy to play for. He manages to rub everyone else in the Kent League up the wrong way bar his team and his squad – we absolutely love him!”

“You can never guess what he’s going to do next when it comes to his management style and he’s not scared to drop someone if they’re not playing well. Compared to last year he’s not afraid to use his bench but he’s grown as a manager just as we have as a team.”

“Going into these Vase games even before the ridiculous amount of League games that we’ve had to play, you look at every player in the pitch and you’ve got absolute quality, and providing everyone works hard we will get what we want. And even when someone’s not working hard, we’re all there encouraging them to get them back on their game.”

“I respond well to encouragement and most other players do, as it’s best to gee players up and get them back into the game rather than putting them down or putting them in the corner. We’re all like that and then when we leave the game we’ll all go out for a meal afterwards and socialise – four of us even went to Stamford Bridge last weekend to see Chelsea play Swansea even though we’re not Chelsea fans!”

“That’s not strictly true as Jon Pilbeam’s the Chelsea fan and dragged the rest of us – me, Andy McMath and Josh Stanford – were dragged “not quite kicking and screaming” along!”

And so the big day is now just 48 hours away – just what will be going through the mind of the man that so many of us hope could win the Vase? Andy thought for a second and then said, “When am I going to get my first goal!” came the honest reply.

“There will be nerves – we get them before normal League games without the added pressure – I’ve never seen that many people watching me watching my team mates play and we’ll just be dying to get out onto the pitch knowing what we’ve got behind us, which is unbelievable work rate and that we may not be the favourites in this tie and we may not have the organisation that they have on the field but we’re going to go and fight for every ball; fight for every challenge. Five minutes before the game we’ll all just be raring to go absolutely raring to go!”

Join us later for the next in our series of “Road to Wembley” as we speak to every member of the Tunbridge Wells squad. Next up is Brad Sandemann…

Picture supplied by Jake Stanford