Continuing KSN’s exclusive series of pre FA Vase Final interviews with the Tunbridge Wells squad, today we speak to the the local man who has progressed through the clubs ranks and whose goal not only gave the Wells that all important 2-0 lead in the first leg of the Semi Final, but also whose goal recently won the club the Kent Senior Trophy for the very first time… it’s JON PILBEAM.

“Still not sunk in despite us being at the stage where so much is happening. There’s been the media day at Wembley and the tickets have come through and people stopping to chat with you who wouldn’t normally bring it up. I have to admit that I do still find it quite awkward to talk about it – it’s great but…!”

Given that he scored what proved to be the vital second goal in the first leg of the Semi Final, we asked Jon just how important the goal was. He said, “Every goal we’ve scored in the run have been crucial in the run that we’ve had, so whilst I know that the goal I got against Shildon was important, but so were all the others!”

“I came down on the morning of the home game with Shildon about 11:00 after work and all the fans were there forking the pitch and it was incredible. Despite the ref saying the game was going ahead, I still went back home thinking that we’re not going to play.”

“Had some food at home and came back and there were so many fans here it was incredible. Then Shildon didn’t come out until late as they still thought the ref was going to call it off, but we were so glad obviously as we’d prepared for it so well, and then what happened was incredible.”

“We had a meeting in the hotel at Shildon before the second leg and I swear it was the most nervous that I’ve ever been in my life because we were just sitting there talking about the game!”

“I don’t normally get that nervous usually – I wasn’t nervous before the first game but with the second game in the hotel with three hours to kill it really was the most nervous experience of my life – I just wanted to get on with it!”

Because of the weather, the only Saturday games that Tunbridge Wells played between early February and the end of March were Vase games – a fact that wasn’t lost on Jon. “Its been nice that it’s been big game after big game as it’s mentality good to be playing big games all the time,” he admitted.

“Last year we wouldn’t have won some of these games as we didn’t have the experience but now playing in front of nearly 2,000 fans doesn’t seem to phase us.”

“We’ve got a mentality in the squad which is incredible – we’ve got such a good squad – when we’re on a run like we’re on, good teams will win games that perhaps they shouldn’t.”

The finish line to what has been a mad month for Martin Larkin’s side is nearly in sight – and the players are fully aware of that as Jon said, “thankfully next week we’ve only playing the Monday before the Final as the amount of games that we had to play really did kill our League hopes.”

“That said, it’ll be interesting to see if Larks does play what he considers to be our strongest side in those last two games before the Final which could give us crucial momentum going into the Final and hopefully by then we’d have all had some kind of decent rest as by now playing three or four games a week is going to have had an effect.”

He’s played for Tunbridge Wells almost all of his career, and the local lad knows exactly what winning at Wembley will be for the club and the town.

“I’ve been here all my career but for a spell I had away at Chatham starting in the under 18s. This really has been a big deal for me – there’s so many people that I see when I’m walking around the town and they’re all talking about it – the whole place is buzzing!”

“It really is going to be an incredible day and we’ve just got to enjoy it and hopefully get a win. It’s going to be… well it’s hard to explain as there will be so many people there who you know and will be there for us!”

“By the time we get to the stage of going out on the day, the adrenaline will be pumping and you’re going to be thinking we can do this; get on the ball as early as you can; be brave; try and make things happen and try to make yourself a hero!”

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 Lewis Mingle…

Picture supplied by Jake Stanford