Brentwood Town manager Rowland targets FA Trophy upset

Keith Rowland, who previously managed Wingate & Finchley, Aveley, and Tilbury, and earned 19 caps for Northern Ireland while playing in the Premier League for Coventry City and West Ham, now works as a postman. He will need to complete his postal round promptly to be on time for a significant upcoming game. In addition to his role with Royal Mail, Rowland manages Brentwood Town, an Isthmian League North club. His team is set to face Southend United in a highly anticipated Essex derby in the FA Trophy this Saturday. The early start time for the match is due to a one o’clock kick-off. “I’m a postie in Dagenham. Saturdays are getting harder and harder to get to football, and I’m quite fortunate in that I’m getting a little bit of help from my colleagues on Saturday,” Rowland informed BBC Essex Sport. He added, “If we win this one, all I’m hoping for is another home draw but with a three o’clock kick-off.” Rowland’s squad has already defeated a former English Football League side in the competition, securing a 1-0 away victory against Hereford to advance to round three. However, they face a considerably larger challenge against Southend, who compete three tiers higher in the non-league football structure. Brentwood is one of only three eighth-tier teams still in the Trophy; the others are Sittingbourne, playing at home against Enfield Town, and Hadley, who will visit Oxford City. Despite enduring years of financial difficulties that jeopardized their existence and inconsistent league performances placing them 14th in the National League, Southend remains the clear favourite against an opponent located just 20 miles away. Rowland commented, “For us to turn round and think, ‘This is winnable’, it’s a hard task, but you always have to dream you can do it. I am sure every one of my players, apart from the goalkeeper, is hoping to score the winning goal. There’s nothing wrong with having ambition if it’s manageable. Why not think positive about the game?” Extensive work has been undertaken since the third-round draw to prepare Brentwood’s 2,000-capacity stadium for the fixture. Concurrently, the team has played four league matches, entering the game against the Shrimpers on the back of consecutive away wins: 1-0 at Brightlingsea Regent and 3-1 at Heybridge Swifts, which have propelled them to seventh in the league standings. “We’ve had so many games, we haven’t had much time to think about it, which is good, but it was always in the back of our minds,” Rowland stated. He also expressed, “I’m disappointed that we had to play on Tuesday night, with Southend not having a game themselves, but we were happy to get through it with a win.” Southend’s last major success was winning the EFL Trophy in 2013. They are eager to contend for silverware in their inaugural season since a consortium, led by Australian businessman Justin Rees, completed a takeover last summer. Striker Aribim Pepple has netted four goals for Southend this season. The team is currently on a three-game unbeaten streak, including a 2-0 victory at Halifax last Saturday, with goals from Aribim Pepple and Adam Crowther. While regaining their position in the EFL is manager Kevin Maher’s primary objective, he has affirmed that they will not be “taking anything lightly” against Brentwood. “It’s a game we want to win, and we think we can make changes and still be strong,” Maher remarked. He continued, “We’ll prepare as we would for any league game, with the same attention to detail. Our prep is pretty standard, and we’ll be ready for it.” Southend and Brentwood have met previously, with Southend securing a 10-1 win in the second round of the 1968-69 FA Cup. However, Maher noted, “I think they’ll be confident after the last round, beating Hereford. They have a lot of dangerous players in attacking areas; they play some good football at times, and I think it will be a competitive one and one we’ve got to be ready for.” He further added, “They’ll be coming in with nothing to lose and give it a real go.” Conversely, Rowland, aged 53, acknowledged he is “under no illusions” regarding the challenge his players face, anticipating that Southend will likely dominate possession. “This will be like an away game because we’ll have to work hard without the ball,” he explained. “We just want to compete as best we can over the 90 minutes. It’s a great game for the club, the players and the people who have been at Brentwood for a long time,” he concluded. The early kick-off for Saturday’s match is due to a boxing event scheduled at the Brentwood Centre from 17:00.