Urchins look to bounce back

Hornchurch boss Jimmy McFarlane wants his side to bounce back against Eastbourne tomorrow (Saturday).

Urchins fell to Conference South defeat at Staines last weekend, but beat Billericay on penalties in the Essex Senior Cup in midweek.

And McFarlane wants them to build on that success as they go back to league business.

He said: “We shouldn’t lack confidence anyway. We had a blip on Saturday, but we haven’t done bad. We’ll be alright.

“We’ve had Eastbourne watched. They were quite big spenders during the summer, but they’re not exactly ripping up trees.

“You don’t get any easy games, though. In the Ryman you could turn up with half a side and still get a win, but you don’t at this level. You have to be at the top of your game.”

Urchins have been hit by a bug, as well as a few knocks, recently, but McFarlane refuses to use that as an excuse.

He added: “We’ve been a bit unlucky with injuries lately, but every club and manager can say the same at some point in the season and you’ve got to get on with it.

“We changed it a bit (against Billericay) with Wayne (Gray) coming in but went 1-0 down to a bad goal.

“We then got in front but it was almost too comfortable and they got a scrappy goal, then one was deflected off Paul Goodacre.

“I thought we were dead and buried, but Lewis (Smith) cut inside and got in a good shot, with pace, on the floor and their goalie made a bit of a boo-boo.

“Overall it was what we deserved, sometimes you have to dig deep. Once Wayne is fully fit he will be a great addition and Ben (Bowditch) is still getting up to the pace of this level after playing for Sudbury.”

n Romford visit Ryman Division One North rivals Sudbury tomorrow (Saturday).

And Boro have fond memories of Suffolk, having won 4-0 there two seasons ago and earned a draw last term.

Paul Martin’s men return to Ship Lane to host Concord in the Ryman League Cup on Wednesday.