Reaching the S&CSL League Cup semi-final under-lines just how much progress Ecclesfield Red Rose 1915 have made since 2018.
That’s the verdict of Red Rose manager Matt Griffin whose young pretenders are ready to launch another all-out assault in the club’s “biggest game” in years.
Ecclesfield head to Olivers Mount tomorrow to take on Handsworth Reserves and Griffin’s Class of 2021 are on the cusp of greatness having led Red Rose to the brink of their first League Cup Final since 1998.
Perhaps such an achievement would have been unthinkable three years ago when Red Rose were languishing in Division One, but here they are and Griffin admits the Handsworth tie is huge.
“The truth is we have to say it is the biggest game we have played (since we took over in 2018),” Griffin told Non League Yorkshire.
“To finally get promoted from Division One in our first season away at Kiveton, that was a massive game, but that was just getting to the Premier which we set out to do from the start.
“A cup semi-final is different because in a knockout competition one bad performance and you’re gone. In a League campaign you can have a couple of off-days and still get promoted.
“Some of the lads who were there when we took over like Ryan Radford have been knocked out in the first round on such a regular basis.
“He was joking about it at Wombwell (after the quarter-final victory) saying ‘I can’t remember getting past the first round’.
“Now I know it is a new structure, but it is still the semi-final of the League Cup.
“For us it is probably the biggest game since we took over and more importantly it is the biggest game for some of the lads who have played for the club for ten or 12 years and not had an opportunity to play in a semi-final.
“When we took over the idea was to try and get promoted within a couple of seasons and then within another couple of seasons start to be competitive in the Prem and be a regular in the late stages of the cups.
“To get there within three years is a massive achievement.”
Ecclesfield were fourth when the doomed Premier Division campaign was curtailed.
They were riding high when the previous season’s records were expunged so the club are clearly on the crest of a wave.
So Griffin hopes the club’s impressive results will help attract talented youngsters who want to progress in the game.
“As much as Red Rose’s reputation is good and it has been around since 1915 and is a well-respected club, the fact is that over the last 15 years the club has had no ground and ups and downs in league performances,” he said.
“We’re on an upward trend now and by getting to the League Cup semi-final it is great for the club.
“We aren’t the Dodworth’s, the Gawber’s, the Wombwell’s, we haven’t got their set-ups or the grounds and infrastructures.
“We haven’t got that at the minute, but we’ll get there.
“If we’re going to compete with those teams and get the players to do that we have to say that we’re going to be competitive and be in semi-finals.
“Hopefully getting to the semi-final does put the Red Rose name out there to young players who are looking for a County Senior League teams to sign for. Hopefully Red Rose will be a club they look at.”
Ecclesfield booked the tie with Handsworth after the ‘fortunate favours the brave’ victory at fancied Wombwell Main which saw Red Rose incredibly lead 3-0 after an hour.
Griffin had promised to launch an all-out assault and his men definitely delivered.
It finished 3-2, but the victory is certainly up there with the best under Griffin and his assistants Jon and Matt Wragg and the Red Rose boss admits it was a dream night.
“The game-plan came off to a tee,” he said.
“Credit to Wombwell for getting it the pitch on despite all the rain we had had.
“It was holding a lot of water so it was quite wet on the surface, but it was quite zippy and yes we did go at it.
“There wasn’t much in it for the first ten minutes, but I felt we were the side who were going to get a goal.
“We did attack and we attacked with three with two out-wide and one striker and we created plenty of chances.
“As the game progressed the water slowed the zippiness and it did become a bit more of a battle.
“But for the first 65 minutes I just thought we were absolutely brilliant.
“We were first to every second ball. We created plenty of chances and to go 3-0 up away at Wombwell for us was amazing.
“I know I always say we believe in our team, but we’re realistic that we’re still progressing to get better and Wombwell are an established team who will beat anyone on their day.”
The relentless tactics served them well at Wombwell and the group stages so spectators can expect the same at Handsworth.
“Handsworth are going to be fit and technically good young player I expect,” he said.
“It will be good to see our young lads go up against them.
“We’ll take the same approach as the Wombwell game because we can’t take any other approach.
“I think if we put the shackles on our young lads we won’t get the best out of them.
“We’ll go out with the same attitude as the Wombwell game.”
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NLY Community Sport, run by James Grayson and Connor Rollinson, has always had combatting social isolation at the top of our objectives when running our Disability Football teams. When we properly return to ‘action’, our work will play an important role in reintroducing our players, who have disabilities and learning difficulties, back into society.
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