Dartford manager Tony Burman relieved after 1-1 FA Trophy quarter-final draw at FC Halifax Town
by Steve Tervet
Dartford manager Tony Burman admitted he was relieved to still
be in the FA Trophy after watching his side held to a 1-1 draw by
FC Halifax Town in Wednesday’s quarter-final.
The Blue Square Bet Premier side played with a man extra for 73
minutes following the dismissal of midfielder Chris Worsley.
But the Darts trailed to Lee Gregory’s opener and they needed a
headed goal from substitute Danny Harris to earn a replay and keep
them in the Trophy.
Burman (pictured) said: “We’re still in the competition and it’s
as simple as that, really.
“We’ve come up against a very determined team with 11 players
and an even more determined team with 10 players. I don’t think we
played particularly well but in the second-half we got in it and
the job’s been done.
“Full credit to Halifax, they’ve had a right go and I don’t
think we matched them in the first-half. They took the game to us
at the start, which we thought might happen, but I felt they were a
yard quicker than us.
“They’ve got 10 men and we probably should have done more but it
wasn’t to be. All credit to the guys, they’re still in the
competition.”
The tie, postponed on Saturday, was then moved from Tuesday to
Wednesday to allow The Shay pitch to recover from heavy rain.
Dartford’s players had to book time off work at late notice but
Burman refused to blame the disrupted preparations for his side’s
slow start.
“It’s easy to say that but no, I’m not going to say that sort of
thing,” he said.
“This is a tough place to come. We’ve been travelling most of
the day but I can’t use that as an excuse.
“I thought Halifax were excellent with their commitment and we
had to match them. I thought we matched them better in the
second-half.”
Worsley’s red card enraged the home fans and even Burman was not
convinced by the decision.
He said: “It looked a late challenge and the referee was closer
than me. Sometimes they’re a yellow card, sometimes they’re a red
card and unfortunately that’s how it went.
“You don’t want to see anyone get sent-off and it wasn’t a dirty
game or anything like that.”
How far do you think Dartford can go in the Trophy? Have
your say below.
31/01/13
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