'Belief' - Three Bridges full of confidence going into Sussex Senior Cup final, says manager Jamie Crellin
Jamie Crellin already has one famous cup run to look back on, now he hopes a second unlikely cup tale will have an even better ending.
As a player, the Three Bridges boss was part of the Hastings United team which reached the third round of The FA Cup in 2012/13 before bowing out 4-1 away to Championship side Middlesbrough at the Riverside. He even scored an important equaliser in a 1-1 draw away to Harrogate Town in the second round of the competition.
Now as a manager, 34-year-old Crellin has led Three Bridges to their first Sussex Transport Senior Cup Final in their 125-year history, with wins against two National League South sides along the way, and he is hoping his side can cause one more upset on Wednesday evening.
This season has been one of the best in the history of the club, as Bridges have won the Isthmian South East Division title, as well as reaching the Sussex Transport Senior Cup Final, beating Horsham on penalties in the quarter-finals after a 1-1 draw and then Worthing 4-2 in the semi-finals on a memorable night at Lancing.
Crellin said: “It is a proud achievement. Everybody at the club has worked so hard for this and everyone at the club deserves this day. For the last 10 years we have not had too much to celebrate as a football club, but we are going on a journey. We kind of started that journey when I took over here, five years ago now.”455 at the end of the day football is 11v11. This season you could have put anyone in front of us, and we would have given it a good go, just with the mindset we are in.
“They have matured as a group; we have got some players who have been here four or five years now, like Danny Ferreira who was 18 when I had him at the start.
“The mistakes he was making at 18 he is not making anymore. We have grown together as a group. The 3G (installed at Three Bridges) helps, we can get together on the pitch four hours a week, which is so important for young players that need coaching. There are a lot of ingredients that have made up this season.”
How about another upset in the final? Crellin added: “We have beaten Horsham and Worthing. We are full of belief, full of confidence and we will give it everything we have got to try to make history!”
After being forced into early retirement due to injury while playing for Three Bridges in 2018, Crellin joined the coaching staff before being appointed manager at the age of 29 in May 2021.