Marine vice chairman Dave McMillan says Saturday’s FA Trophy quarter-final against Woking is one of the club’s biggest fixtures in years, as the Crosby side look to reach the last four for the first time since the early 1990s.
Marine, who sit tenth in the National League North, welcome Woking from the division above (National League) at Rossett Park at 3pm on Saturday, standing two games away from the final at Wembley Stadium.
McMillan believes the importance of this weekend’s tie speaks for itself.
“It’s certainly a massive fixture,” he said.
“In context, you’d probably say the playoff final when we beat Macclesfield was bigger in terms of the club’s direction, but in the Trophy it’s the first time in thirty-one years we’ve got this far.”
Preparing for big crowds and big occasions
McMillan says Marine’s growth in recent years, both on and off the pitch, has helped them prepare for high-stakes fixtures like Saturday’s.
“Certainly, logistically, in terms of dealing with bigger crowds, we’ve learned a lot in probably six or seven years,” he said.
He added that the club has developed a stronger profile and improved infrastructure to match its ambitions.
Marine are expecting one of their biggest crowds of the season, with around 1,000 home tickets already sold for Saturday’s tie.
The club has urged supporters to buy in advance, with demand continuing to rise ahead of the quarter-final.
Spurs cup tie ‘massive’ for Marine’s growth
McMillan reflected on the club’s famous FA Cup third-round tie against Tottenham Hotspur in 2021, which was broadcast live on BBC One and delivered one of the biggest moments in Marine’s history.
“If you get to the third round of the cup and you’re live against the Spurs, live on BBC One, then it’s not gonna do any harm in terms of boosting your profile,” he said.
“It was a major factor increasing attendances post-COVID… certainly in terms of raising our profile, it was massive.”
He said the financial boost from that match allowed Marine to invest heavily in infrastructure.
“The Spurs game gave us the opportunity to reinvest that money in the club facilities.
“Putting a 3G pitch in, refurbishing the social club, and further ground improvements that we needed to do since we got promoted to National League North.”
Financial and emotional stakes in Trophy run
With Marine now just two wins from Wembley, McMillan says the FA Trophy offers both financial opportunity and a rare moment of glory.
“There’s a financial aspect, certainly in terms of prize money and gate shares,” he said.
“I think Spennymoor last season made in excess of 100k just on the final itself.
“But even if you didn’t make a penny out of it, for a club of any size to get to Wembley is a once-in-a-generation opportunity really.
“We’ve got a very tough game on Saturday, and if we get through that, you’ll certainly have another tough semi-final.
“But it’s all about allowing the fans to dream, isn’t it? You want your team to be winning trophies and get promotions.”
An all-Merseyside final between Marine and Southport
Local rivals Southport are also in quarter-final action on Saturday as they host Yeovil Town.
If both progress, there is a possibility of a Marine–Southport final at Wembley.
“That’d be absolutely fantastic, wouldn’t it?” McMillan said.
“Both clubs have had lots of injury problems, and for both to get to Wembley would be fantastic.”
All four quarter-final fixtures have a National League North/South team at home to a National League side, with McMillan saying that there’s a chance a few could progress to the semi-finals.
“You’d like to think at least one or two of the Step Two clubs are gonna get through.
“Hopefully it’ll be Marine and Southport.”
Strong league campaign under Bobby Grant
Marine sit tenth in the National League North, just five points off the play-offs under new manager Bobby Grant.
McMillan praised the former striker for adapting to the demands of his first senior managerial role.
“He’s a rookie manager coming into a very, very tough league,” he said.
“We’re comfortably tenth, and given the injury list we’ve had this season, that is an absolutely fantastic achievement.”
He praised the dynamic between Grant and the director of football, Neil Young.
“They get on really well and complement each other. Bobby would probably also tell you he’s made a few mistakes, but there’s no manager at any level who doesn’t.”
Looking ahead, McMillan believes Marine are well on track for a solid end to the season.
“We’re on significantly more points than last season with an improved league position.
“Whether that’s where we are now, whether that’s in the play-offs, we’ll see. And if you do get play-offs, as we saw when we beat Macclesfield, who knows?
“Anything can happen.”
(Featured image by Harley Sheldon)
