Stourbridge spark the magic of the FA Cup

We see it every year: the upsets, the fallen giants, the passion, the pride. The fireworks of the F.A. Cup provide a welcome break from the increasingly money-driven humdrum of top-flight football for many fans. A small town club from somewhere no-one's ever heard of overcoming a team full of prima donnas worth more than a Rolls Royce by their own estimations and less than a pre-match pie by everyone else's always brings a smile to neutral faces. And that's just it: every neutral fan loves seeing the underdog come out victorious, however, this season my own personal experiences of arguably the greatest domestic cup in the world have hit home an awful lot more than usual.

Ask anyone outside the West Midlands about Stourbridge and a look of sheer cluelessness will perch between their ears. Even better yet, ask me – a Stourbridge lad born and bred – the same question and, whilst my answer would consist of many of the town’s cons, it would be expressed with a look of sheer pride smacked across my face, and the same could be applied to every Stourbridge resident at this present moment in time. Why? Because this year the standard F.A. cup giant killing has reared its head in the heart of the Midlands at The War Memorial Ground – home to The Glassboys, Stourbridge Town FC.

Since the club’s inception 135 years ago, the Black Country outfit has never quite been able to shrug off the shadows cast over it by local Premier League sides, Wolves and West Bromwich Albion. Having only qualified for the first round of the F.A. Cup once in their history – and not venturing any further - the odds seemed to be firmly stacked against Stourbridge pulling up any trees in the competition this season. So when some 600 proud locals made the long journey down to Plymouth earlier this month, expectation was cast aside whilst hope thrived. On that day The Glassboys were unlucky not to come away victorious having been cruelly punished via a collector’s item of goal from Onismor Bhasera in the dying embers of the game.

However, Gary Hackett’s men were to have their moment when the two sides met in the replay at The War Memorial Ground last Tuesday. A largely inexperienced and out of form Plymouth side were outclassed from start to finish by the 11 men in red and white stripes. Paul McCone sunk the first blow to Carl Fletcher’s Green Army before Sean Evans wheeled away in celebration having added a second goal midway through the second half. In fairness, Fletcher would have done well to argue that the scoreline didn’t flatter his Argyle; the difference between the two sides would have been greater had Ryan Rowe’s wonderful performance yielded a goal or two. If there was ever a match befitting of your archetypal F.A. Cup giant killing this was it; it had everything: surprises, goals, dismissals and even a mascot donning an F.A. Cup costume being brutally assaulted by several Stourbridge Town players during the post-match celebrations.

So onto The Glassboys’ second round tie: Stevenage Borough at home on 3rd December. Whilst Stourbridge’s stretched odds to win the competition may be fairly lucid in their explanation, they may well be worth a punt on making the third round of this competition. Regardless of what happens come early-December, one thing’s for certain: Gary Hackett and his boys will have captured the hearts and imagination of an entire community. Whilst calls for a knighthood for Hackett and domestic honours for his side may be premature, to write off this small club’s chances of going further in this year’s cup would be very naïve indeed. And should they cause yet another upset, this local lad will be beaming with pride.

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