Right back Shaun Cummings has spoken about the upcoming trip to White Hart Lane to face Tottenham Hotspur in the quarter finals of this year’s FA Cup.
Making the trip on Sunday afternoon with the game screened live on BBC One at 2pm, Cummings knows that it’s all to play for with a Wembley semi final place on the cards for the winner, but despite seeing off three Premier League sides so far in the competition (Bournemouth, Watford and Leicester City), he also knows that all the pressure will be on the hosts, so we can just enjoy ourselves and give it our best shot.
Speaking to the official site in his own pre game press conference, Cummings explained.
‘We definitely felt like we had a chance against AFC Bournemouth, Watford and Leicester City. Football is a game of eleven v eleven and the best team on that day wins the game. We’ve showed the quality that we’ve had and got throughout this run so far and to beat and keep clean sheets against three Premier League teams show the strength and character that this squad has.’
With Tottenham posing a different test given the year they are having again under Mauricio Pochettino and the form of the likes of Harry Kane and Dele Alli, Cummings went on to say that we had no fear going into the game because we haven’t reached this stage of the competition purely on luck.
‘I’m not worried about the fact we have to play away from home. It’ll be a good experience and hopefully we can prove that it has not just been luck beating those top-flight sides at The Den. On his day, Harry Kane can score at any given time, so we’ve got to make sure that we keep our concentration levels high. It’s going to be a hard task trying to keep a fourth Premier League team out, especially one with the quality of Tottenham Hotspur, so we’ll have to perform to the best of our ability.’
With Cummings more than playing his part in our nine match straight clean sheet run, Cummings has also hit the net in matches against Bournemouth and Leicester but he was quick to pass the praise onto his colleagues for the season we are having.
‘I’ve scored two goals in this competition so far, but whilst its nice to score, its a team effort – I’m just one of the eleven that’s out on the field. Regarding the clean sheets, it’s just hard work. Out on the training pitch, we work as a defensive unit to not let goals in. That carries out on to the pitch. The back four and goalkeeper, no matter who has been playing, has played very well. We know we can score goals at the other end, so we’re trying to build on that base. Our work-rate has been a big factor. All the players in this squad are winners. Everyone wants to win. The work we do out on the training pitch is second to none – we’re always grafting.’
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