The Harriers continue on the FA Cup glory trail tomorrow at Rymans League side Ware FC for a game that could turn out to be a banana skin for us but a momentous victory for the proverbial team of butchers, bakers and candlestick makers.

We got through to this round at the expense of Vauxhall Motors in a 3-1 victory while on the same day our opponents tomorrow were seeing off higher placed rivals Tonbridge Angels by a similar score at their Wodson Park ground.  The scenes of jubilation following their victory was what the FA Cup is all about in these early stages of the worlds greatest club trophy and we'll be wanting to stop any similar kind of partying by putting an end to their dreams.

After getting a run out against Bromsgrove Rovers in a reserve game on Wednesday evening James Constable is now over his recent hamstring injury and will be raring to get back onto the goal scoring trail after falling behind in the leading scorers tables in recent weeks.  Also on his way back is Iyseden Christie after his short run out at the end of the victory at Burton last week.

He did look a bit unfit when he came on but after also playing against Burton he'll be raring to go too.  I think he'll be on the bench anyway with Justin Richards and Beano the first choice pairing out on the field.

Sadly Dean Bennett will be playing no part in the game, or for the following two either, after his dismissal at Burton.  He'll only get one game in once his ban ends anyway before he heads back to Chester City.

Another player that was in the wars at Burton was Michael McGrath after he fell badly and rolled his ankle.  He hobbled off the pitch to some great applause, after again proving his doubters wrong with another fine display, and looked to be in a bit of pain.  Hopefully Fozzie will have been working hard on getting the youngster fit enough to face Ware.

Of the long term injuries Scott Bevan is back in light training, Sir Jeffrey Kenna is in re-habilitation after his recent operation, Dean Coleman seems to be fit once again but is second choice behind Chris MacKenzie and Simon Russell is still having injections for the fluid on his knee.

As for Ware they will really be up for this one.  Their only other previous appearance in this round of the FA Cup was back in 1968 when they travelled to near neighbours Luton Town and were doing well to hold them 0-0 until thirty minutes from the end of the game.  Amazingly the game ended 6-1 to the home side and Wares FA Cup dream was over for almost 40 years.

Now they have another chance of the dream.

Their message board, http://maltsters.proboards106.com/index.cgi, seems to have come alive in the past two weeks with, at times, just as many Harriers fans as Ware fans on there asking different questions and getting as equally excited about it as all the home fans.  I can genuinely say that they have probably been amongst the most eager to please fans that I have ever come across.

They are fully absorbed in the game and planning blue and white marches from the town centre to the ground, blue and white merchandise to sell and appearances on television to look forward too.  We, on the other hand, are a bit blaisé about it but can fully understand their excitement after going through similar many times before, most recently at Wembley last season in the FA Trophy.

It's not known what the injury situation is with their players and not too much is known about them either.  Their 'biggest' player could well be Paul Burton who once played for Oxford Utd but never against us.  The rest of them are the butchers and bakers of the footballing world but should not be sneered at because, like the fans, they'll be up for this game too.

The Harriers will be wanting this game because of the money side of it but most of all to avoid the embarrassment of losing to a side some way below our level.  Whoever does win let's hope it's for the right reasons and that all the fans respect each other, in victory and defeat.





Harriers from:
Coleman, MacKenzie, Harkness, Bignot, Creighton, Whitehead, Munday, McGrath, Ferrell, Hurren, Penn, Richards, Blackwood, Barnes-Homer, Smikle, Christie, Constable.

Ware from:
Woods, Jones, Allen, Blower, Gudgeon, Wolf, Hammonds, Bardle, Rose, Berry, Burton, Spendlove, Neilson, Crawford, Stevens, Ramshaw, Ellerbeck, Frendo, Horsey.