Speaking ahead of this weekend’s FA Cup First Round tie against Port Vale, Managerial Advisor Glenn Roeder says the competition holds a special place in his heart.
Roeder captained QPR in the 1982 final and says the whole team are looking forward to tomorrow’s game.
“First of all we are very pleased to have won another away game after winning at Morecambe. Everyone has been excited with the draw; it is always good I think to play a team from a higher division. The players obviously want to test themselves.
“I am not one of those people that think the FA Cup has lost its shine. I know lots of managers and coaches have. For me personally, the FA Cup is a special competition that is steeped in history.
“We would like to get into Port Vale, get a winning result and be in the hat for the second round. The players have again trained well; I have never come away from a week’s training concerned about the game on Saturday.”
Youngsters have somewhat taken over the team over the past few weeks with Dale Gorman, Ben Kennedy, Harry McKirdy and Henry Cowans all impressing with their recent performances.
Roeder says he is a big believer in youth and that the manager has a tough decision to make in attack this weekend, with Matt Godden possibly coming back into the squad.
“Some of the younger players just of late have been playing really well.
“I have always believed that if you are good enough, you are old enough. I have never adhered to other managers or coaches beliefs that you can’t put too many kids in there. You put them in on merit.
“Darren has maintained that in most cases if you do well and you have got the shirt, you retain it. So, it will be interesting this week to see what he does it Matt Godden turns out to be fit.
“That is not a manager’s nightmare, that is a manager’s dream.”