Crumlin United will play Drogheda United in the second round of the FAI Cup
Crumlin hoping to upset FAI Cup champions
THE second round of the FAI Cup is upon us and Crumlin United have been drawn away to play current holders Drogheda United at United Park this Friday.
The tie comes after a disappointing league campaign where Crumlin narrowly missed out on promotion back to the Leinster Senior League top flight after being relegated to the second highest tier last year.
Now in the FAI Cup after beating LSL champions Lucan United 4-2 the year they were relegated, manager James Lee maintains that a team of Crumlin’s pedigree should be expected to perform well in cup competition.
“Well look over the years we’re the top dog if you want to call it that, in amateur football.
‘We’ve maybe fallen off a little bit over the last couple of years but for me we’re used to being in this competition.
We haven’t been for a couple of years but the club deserves it. This is where we should be. We should be in these types of fixtures.
The stature of the club will always be there because we are one of the biggest amateur clubs in the country. It’s a stage that the club is used to being at, this stage and further on.”
James has been with the club for the guts of 17 years, initially as a player before becoming captain and now has been the manager of the senior team about to enter into his fifth season in the role. He has transitioned well to the position.
“It’s not a job for everybody, let’s put it that way. I’ve seen many people come and go over the years at different clubs. It’s a tough slog.
‘At Crumlin in my first season we won the senior division. Then it’s constant players moving on, retiring, a constant rebuild. That’s where we are. We’re kind of at the rebuild stage but I think we’re well into the rebuild now at this stage with last season behind us.”
Lee spoke about the wealth of talent coming through the academy in the club, maintaining that the future was very bright.
“We’ve some serious young talent coming through the ranks. Probably the best talent I’ve seen come through the club, that’s obviously a big statement because there’s been a lot come through.
There’s a serious batch of young talent coming through. Which we’ve nurtured over the last couple of years. I think there’s big days to come for this group of players.”
It is hard to picture a bigger day than playing the FAI Cup champions in their home stadium.
“It’s going to be a good experience for the younger players. We have to be careful what way we go about it.
‘At our own level we’re on the front foot. We’ve done a bit of homework, we’ve watched them over the last few weeks.
‘They have a style of play but we don’t know if they’ll try change it up themselves. I think they will respect us as we will with them. We’ll put it through to the players how we want to set up. We have to be careful because we want to be in the game as well”
Lee lamented the timing of the fixtures in regards to how the line up with the domestic professional and amateur season maintaining that it provided the likes of Drogheda an edge.
“We’re already at a disadvantage because we’re only back in pre-season a week or so going into the game. They are a top premier division side, going in we will have five sessions and a friendly against Killester.
‘I think all the amateur clubs are at a disadvantage at this stage due to the differences in the seasons.
‘It’s almost like a double whammy, at the end of the day you’re playing a premier division side, a top premier division side at that. They are the holders of the cup, you’ve only five sessions under your belt. You’re already at a disadvantage but that just doubles it.”
