On Saturday afternoon, Northern Ireland’s largest fishing port will be behind the efforts of Martin Larkin’s Tunbridge Wells side to win the FA Carlsberg Vase at Wembley, as one of their own pulls on the Red of the Wells looking to create history.

For the fishing village of Kilkeel in County Down is home to a man who now in his fourth season at the Culvenden Stadium, and is an integral part to the Wells hopes of Wembley glory… it’s ANDY McMATH.

Reaching a Wembley Final is most player’s dream, and it was a dream that took a while to register for Andy as he admitted, “It took some time to sink in, as if I’m honest on the day in the Semi Final at Shildon, I don’t think that we did ourselves justice.”

“But that said, I don’t think there’s been a point on the run when that was that and we’re gone; last season would have been a different story, but the squad that we’ve got this season is just absolutely incredible as when we go behind, we never think that we’re going to lose the match and we can always come back as we’re capable of creating chances and putting them away.”

“That’s what we’ve done on occasions – including when we won the Kent Senior Trophy a couple of weeks ago. I don’t know what it is but there’s just a confidence about the place that I haven’t known before – we’ve had to dig down deep on many occasions especially in that Semi Final at Shildon when they went 3-0 up and in front on aggregate!”

“That game was phenomenal – a real roller coaster both mentally and emotionally. It was really hard for us to get our heads right as we went to the North East two nil up – you think that you’ve got a platform but it was that final line where do you push on and build on the lead or sit back and absorb the pressure that you know is going to coming.”

“Thing is at Shildon, I don’t really think we did either! The first ten to fifteen minutes just went past us and we were made to pay for that as they levelled the aggregate score by getting two goals, and then it was anyone’s really!”

“We were on the back foot really but we plugged away and Andy (Irvine) popped up with equaliser, and then Perry (Spackman) of all people pops up with winner with a header from a corner.”

By speaking to Andy it was clear he wasn’t a Man of Kent or a Kentish Man. Laughing he said, “You spotted that! Seriously I’m originally from Kilkeel, which is a fishing village about an hour South of Belfast on Northern Ireland’s east coast, and as far as I know I don’t think anyone from the village has ever played at Wembley before.”

“I’m delighted to say that some of my family are flying over for the game – I think on Saturday morning going back the following morning with hefty hangovers I would imagine – I think that there’s six or seven of the family coming over and I’m really looking forward to seeing them.”

“Knowing that they’re coming over is a huge boost but you know it’s hard to picture the day itself as I’ve never been involved with anything like this before – we had the County Cup final a few weeks ago, but obviously Wembley is going to be ten or maybe even twenty times bigger and even the build up to it with the media attention which is unbelievable has taken us along on a crest of a wave – we’ve been getting phone calls all over the place and you have to go with and – it might sound a bit big time – everyone’s enjoying it.”

On the March to the Arch, Andy has been a vital cog in the Wells machine, something that he begrudgingly admits, “To win the plaudits that I have done along the way has obviously been very pleasing and very flattering, but over the last few games, I don’t think I’ve done myself justice.”

“I was suspended after being sent off in the last 16 at Larkhall which meant that (along with the weather) I had three or four weeks out of a team with the sort of momentum that we were developing at the time, it was really tough for me to get back into it.”

“But certainly I think that I have contributed to the run which is great as it’s now a big part of the club’s history. In a way all of the league games that we’ve had to play in the last month has at least given me the chance to get myself back to the sharpness level that I need to be at.”

“When the day arrives, we’ve just got to be focused to go out and perform. I think by the time we get called to come out of the dressing room, we’ll all know exactly what we need to do and we’ll have to go out and try to do the very best that we can really.”

“Obviously we’re all going to try and enjoy the atmosphere and enjoy it as much as possible, but we’re not going just to make up the numbers – we will put in a quality performance which will hopefully be good enough to bring the Trophy home and to make the people of (in my case at least) Kilkeel and Tunbridge Wells proud!

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 Perry Spackman…