Jay Saunders is looking forward to what the competition will bring for his young squad.
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00:00And Jay joins me now. So, Jay, it's one of only a few times that Tonbridge have
00:05gotten to the FA Cup first round proper and how does it feel to be a part of
00:08that? Yes, it's fantastic. I think for anyone who was at the game Saturday and saw
00:15the scenes and what it meant to the supporters and everyone associated with
00:18the club, it's obviously great that we've, as a management team, have been
00:22able to play our part in getting us there. So, yeah, it was a really good
00:25occasion and I was made well aware of the previous record in the FA Cup, so
00:30it's nice to finally get to that first round again. Brilliant. And how far would
00:36you like Tonbridge to go? Obviously, last year, Maidstone proved that that magic
00:40can happen. Yeah, look, you need that little bit of luck. You need
00:45things to go your way. I think, obviously, we'll see who we get in the draw today.
00:50Hopefully. I mean, there's people who have had their say in what they'd
00:54like. I think for us, or for me personally, I'd love a TV game. I think
00:59the revenue that brings and the publicity that brings and the sort of
01:02awareness to the club, as you saw, like you say, with Maidstone, what it can do for
01:05the club. So, from our point of view, I'd love that. But it just depends, really, on
01:10the draw. You can, I've had it previous times, we've had really good runs in
01:14it and other times where the draw just goes against you. So, we'll see who we
01:17get tonight. Obviously, the further we get, the better, I think, for all round, for
01:21everyone that works at the club, for the financial reasons, for the, as I say, the
01:25publicity for the future generations, if you like, of the club as well. It can
01:30have that sort of knock-on effect. So, we've just got our fingers crossed and
01:34we've done our part in getting through and hopefully the draw is kind to us.
01:37Now, speaking of the draw, who would be the ideal team to face and would you
01:43prefer it to be at home or away? I saw our chair, Sophie, say that she'd love
01:50Birmingham away. I'm kind of split on it. I think now you don't get the replays, I
01:56feel that a home draw against a good league club and maybe live on TV would
02:01be the ultimate draw. Other people have said the lowest-ranked team and
02:06try and get through another round, again, to earn more money. For me, I think
02:12someone like Agilina Michal and a local club at home on TV would be
02:16unbelievable. But, like I say, it's a tough one because I think some
02:23of the players would love to go to a big ground when you're here in the
02:25Birmingham's and clubs like that in this league that come into the draw.
02:28It's a great experience for the players. So, I'm kind of flipped. I
02:32think as a manager and as a management team, we're just kind of, it's hard for us
02:36because as much as we're excited about the draw, we're also concentrating and
02:39trying to plan for our league game on Saturday. I was going to ask you
02:43about that. So, how would you strike the balance, do you think,
02:48between league matches and the FA Cup now that that's happening?
02:53Like I say, it's hard because you get excited by the FA Cup and we're
02:59all really pleased to be in that first round. But, at the same time, we've got
03:02Worthing away on Saturday, which for us is a massive game, but a really great
03:05start to the season and we want to continue that. So, I think as a management
03:08team, it's up to us to make sure the boys are fully focused on that and we'll get
03:12the draw out of the way tonight and then we'll be, from tomorrow night, at training,
03:15we'll be concentrating on the Worthing game. So, it is difficult, especially when
03:20you saw the celebrations after the game Saturday and how much it means to people,
03:23but that's part of our job, I guess. Myself, Tom and Blackie, my assistants,
03:27will be fully focused on getting the boys back down to earth on Tuesday and
03:31cracking on with that league fixture.
03:34Absolutely, and at that match at
03:37Cray Wanderers, we just heard the, you could hear the excitement from the fans.
03:40What do you think it means to them to have you in this competition?
03:44Yeah, when I came to the club, everyone sort of spoke about it. I think I was told
03:48after the game Saturday, saying like 50 years, they've only been twice in the
03:51first round. So, I don't think the last time that happened, unfortunately, it was
03:55COVID. So, they played Bradford and it was behind closed doors. So, I think for us,
03:59there's been a lot of pressure for the last two years. And, like I say, with a
04:02little bit of luck, we've had loads of injuries and stuff the last two
04:05years and it always coincided with the FA Cup game. So, for us to finally get
04:09through, I mean, I had some lovely messages from supporters about how much it
04:13meant and how much it was like when they won play-offs. It was the same
04:17feeling and I think that says it all. So, as I say, we're just glad as a team
04:22and as a management team and a squad, we're happy that we've got there and
04:27seeing the players in with the supporters and the supporters singing
04:30all the way through the game. They were immense on Saturday. So, yeah, I feel like
04:35we played our part and hopefully, like I say, I think for the supporters
04:39especially, I really hope that we get get a good draw.
04:43And just finally, who should we be watching? You mentioned the squad. Who is your standout?
04:49It's a tricky one. We're a really young squad this year. Our average age is about 22, I think.
04:53So, we've got the experienced ones like you, Scott Wagstaff, that have played
04:56Football League and had good runs in the FA Cup. We've got Sean Shields, who's a
05:00really big, key player for us. But then we've got some really young, exciting
05:06players. I think you look defensively, the likes of Jamie Fielders, you're running Nelsons.
05:10You go into midfield, again, we've got the Jeremy Sandlers, there's people like this.
05:16It's hard to pick out an individual. I do really feel like it is a team effort this year.
05:21We've got a really good squad and when we leave people out, we're sort of not weakening the squad.
05:27But there's a lot of exciting young players there that I think that, again, I think that's why
05:31they like a cup run. It puts them in the shop window, unfortunately for us.
05:34But, no, there's a real good squad there and some really good players that I think will go on
05:40and have really good careers in the game.
05:42Brilliant. Thank you so much for joining us, Jay, and best of luck for the next round.
05:46No problem. Thank you very much.