24 January 2008

Havant ready for Liverpool clash


The FA CUP e-on Countdown to this weekend's 4th round

JAY AIMS TO TAME TORRES
By Mike Walters 24/01/2008


Quantity surveyor Jay Smith has al ready measured up the task of marking £26million Fernando Torres - and it's a case of mind over matador.
Havant and Waterlooville defender Smith believes in judging footballers by performance on the day rather than the name on a shirt. Even if it's Liverpool's No.9 shirt and record signing Torres is wearing it.
With 123 places in English football's food chain separating Smith and the Spain striker, the chances of Havant keeping a clean sheet in their dream fourth-round tie at Anfield on Saturday are slimmer than a supermodel's size zero.
Smith, 26, once of Brentford, said: "Although there's bound to be a frightening aspect when you play against someone of his calibre, I'm not worried as such about marking Torres. All the pressure will be on Liverpool.
"If I end up marking him I will be trying to tell myself that it's only a name on the back of his shirt. If I try and mark the reputation I will be chasing shadows - but we came up against a Spanish striker in the last round (Swansea's Guillem Bauza) and that turned out all right. I might be lucky, he might have an off-day, so I won't be thinking about Torres and his £26m price tag too much."
Smith will benefit from maintaining a close proximity to Torres, if only when the final whistle sounds and the day's biggest race, the 4.45 Shirt Swap handicap, comes under starter's orders.
He added: "I want to remember it as a special day in my career: I want to remember running out in front of the Kop and hearing 40,000 people singing You'll Never Walk Alone.
"And I will probably touch that sign above the tunnel which says 'This is Anfield' - just because it's so different from Westleigh Park, where you enter the pitch from behind the tea hut and the only sign should say, 'Please shut the gate'."
One sore point for the Hawks is the FA's insistence that defender Justin Gregory will be suspended for the Liverpool game.
Havant switched their Blue Square South match at Thurrock to last night so his ban was served before the Cup tie on Merseyside.
But FA rules forbid fixture changes which manipulate the disciplinary system. And the match was called off after 24 minutes due to floodlight failure.
Gregory will join Brett Poate, who was sent off at Swansea in the last round, in the stands at Anfield.

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