Proud Steve Groome salutes his cup heroes

Groom, who runs the side with Jason Pike, saw his charges spring a shock by beating fellow West Midlands League Premier Division side Haughmond 1-0 to lift the TJ Vickers trophy.

Despite 10 places separating the teams in the league standings, Groome was confident of an upset and used the underdogs tag to motivate his players ahead of the final.

“We were the underdogs, but that suited us,” said Groome. “It took all the pressure off our lads and we were able to express ourselves.

“I said to them before the game, go out and play with freedom. We’re not supposed to win, go and enjoy yourself, go and play with a smile on your face.”

As for the game itself, Groome reveals everything went as planned and he couldn’t have asked for any more from his players.

“Our preparation and tactics worked, they were absolutely spot on,” he said. “Our players gave 150 per cent, ran for the full 90 minutes, they left everything on the pitch. We had a strong starting eleven, and we controlled the game for long periods. We were prepared to sacrifice possession in their half and when we had the ball, we used it well.

“We were ready for a strong reaction once we scored but we dealt with their threat well and in the closing stages, we looked like the team most likely to score.

“To a man we were superb, from one to 11 we were brilliant. In fact, I’m proud of the whole 16, everyone played their part. It was a great win.”

Groome acknowledges his team have endured a difficult season and he is over the moon to finish with a piece of silverware.

“They deserve this, it hasn’t been an easy season,” he said. “It has been tough on our lads but they have stuck with us and this is their reward.

“Hopefully this can give us the kick-start we need, next season we can push up and get the club back to where it was a couple of seasons ago.”