I'm Hardly Going To Get Another Chance To Play At Wembley Said Purdie

Rob Purdie

Rob Purdie has said that at his age he's unlikely to ever have the chance to play at Wembley.

The Hereford FC midfielder has  made over 300 appearances in a Hereford shirt but none as important as the chance of stepping out at Wembley next Sunday.

"I’m 33 years old, so at my age, I’m hardly going to get another chance to play at Wembley,” he told Darlington FC. 

“And with us getting promotion, then we’ll be in the Trophy next season, so there’s very little chance of getting to Wembley in that. It will be the last chance I’ll ever have to play there, but I don’t know when it will sink in. Wembley will be the best ground I’ve ever played at.

“We’re confident that we’re going to win, especially as we’ve won our league and two cups. We’re going to have a big following, the FA have told us that 18,000 Hereford fans have bought tickets, and at the moment, that’s 11,000 more than Grimsby have sold for the Trophy final! So it’s going to be a pretty special atmosphere, it means that our fans will be filling a quarter of the stadium on all three tiers.
 
“Not many people at this level walk out in front of nearly 20,000 of their own fans. All I want now is to score! I’m hoping that we get a penalty – as long as it isn’t in a shootout! We know that we’re going to have a tough game, because Morpeth are from a league that’s had clubs regularly in the final over the last few years.”

Purdie had a spell with Darlington.

“Hereford have had really bad owners in recent years, and the club has been messed up. The gates were only about 1,000, and they were struggling to stay in the Conference Premier.

“What happened to the club – being wound up and then reforming in the Midland League at step 5 – is probably the best thing that has ever happened to it.
 
“The gates have increased enormously since then. Everything is now positive. We’ve played in front of 4,000 people on five or six occasions, and it’s great to be able to win things and look forward to the future. We’ve won promotion to the Southern League and the League Cup.

“Hereford supporters don’t own the club like they do at Darlington. The owners of Hereford are just a small group of fans, who each put £50,000 into the club. They know that they won’t get their money back; they don’t have any shares or expect to make a profit.
 
“The team is composed of local lads, who all want to play for the club. Everybody is in together, and there are no egos in the dressing room. We’re all pretty down-to-earth, and we all want to be there for Hereford. The manager, Peter Beadle, wants to do well for the club just like Martin Gray does at Darlington.”

  

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