By Greg Plummer
Holbeach United 2
Gorleston 0
Holbeach United fans got a glimpse of the future on Saturday after young striker Jordan Keeble was given a taste of cup action on the big stage.
Keeble, son of former Tigers favourite Shaun, came on for the final 20 minutes during the 2-0 FA Vase success over Gorleston at Carter’s Park.
Lee Beeson (44) and Jamie Clarke (70) fired the goals for Graham Drury and John Chand’s side in a first round game that they could easily have won by more.
But it was Keeble’s cameo that had those at the game talking at the end – and joint boss Drury has admitted that he won’t be frightened to call upon the club’s young talent during the remainder of the campaign.
He said: “I had a good chat with John (Chand) before the game. We are two bosses who have never really been joint managers before.
“We agree to disagree, which you’ve got to do, as I wouldn’t want a partner who is just going to agree to everything you want to do.
“As a club, we’ve got to stop bringing players in and work with what we’ve got. If we need to dip into the reserves the players are there to do it and John agrees to that now.
“Its important, as a club, that we pull the two teams together, instead of keep disrupting the team by bringing players in on loan or signing new faces week-in and week out. If we do that I think we can have a real strong push after Christmas, as long as we are still in the mix going into it.”
Teenager Keeble could have easily scored his first senior goal at Carter’s Park with the Tigers already home and dry by the time he came on. The striker chased down a ball and his lob looked set to find the back of the net, only for a Gorleston defender to deflect it behind for a corner.
Goals from Beeson and Clarke clinched victory, but in truth Holbeach should have had their name in the hat inside the opening 20 minutes.
Beeson struck the post twice in the space of a minute, while Lee Dube’s effort took a deflection via visiting defender Aaron Taylor before rebounding back off the woodwork.
Craig Parker saw his lob beat Liam Hembling, only to be denied by the offside flag, while Hembling was called into action just before the break to palm the ball away for a corner.
The deadlock was finally broken in first-half stoppage time when the busy Beeson drilled home after good work between Stacey Cartwright and Clarke.
Gorleston were much-improved at the start of the second period with Ally Mckenna’s centre avoiding everyone in the box.
The Greens also had penalty appeals turned down by the referee after Bradley’s Hough’s shot appeared to strike the arm of a Holbeach defender.
Holbeach doubled their advantage midway through the second period when Dube’s centre was clinically finished by Clarke at the far post.
Gorleston substitute Scott Woodgate shot straight at Conroy from a free-kick with 11 minutes to go but that was the Greens’ only serious effort on target all afternoon.
The win banks the Tigers £600 – and they’ll host UCL Premier Division title rivals Huntingdon Town in the next round on November 22.
Drury still believes his side can win the Vase – and is refusing to rein in his ambitions despite revealing that he’s been ‘accused’ of putting added pressure on his side.
He added: “I’ve been slated a bit this week because of saying that I believe that we can go on to win the FA Vase.
“If I didn’t think we could win it then I wouldn’t be here and if I didn’t think we could win the league then I wouldn’t be here.
“The players know that and they know how I work.
“I’ve told them if anyone thinks I’m putting pressure on them and they are not man enough to stand up and take it then they shouldn’t be here.
“That’s the way I manage. It is heated, but if you can’t stand it get out of the kitchen.
“Other than the Boston United situation I have always had success and I’m not here to be popular.
“It’s not a popularity contest for Graham Drury and it doesn’t bother me if I’m disliked.
“If you look at the top managers who have gone on to do well, then you’ve only got to look at someone like Steve Evans.
“People can say what they like about him. He’s not a liked man, but he is a very successful football manager.”
Holbeach: Conroy, Allen, Cartwright (Brown), King, Spencer, Stevens, Beeson, Duffy, Dube (Keeble), Clarke (Pinner), Parker.
Gorleston: Hembling, Daniels, Manning, Lambert, Taylor, Howell, Bell (Woodgate), Sandford, McKenna, Hough, Middleton (Pillar).
Attendance: 115.
