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Woking boss has kettle request after cup loss to Watford

Woking manager Alan Dowson is hoping the money from the club’s third-round FA Cup defeat to Premier League Watford will allow him to buy a kettle for his office.

The National League South outfit did not disgrace themselves as they lost 2-0 at home to a side 110 places above them in the football pyramid.

Watford, showing 11 changes from their 3-3 Premier League draw at Bournemouth, laboured into round four as Will Hughes struck early on before captain Troy Deeney came off the bench to secure the win with a late tap-in.

Alan Dowson hopes he can get a new kettle
Alan Dowson hopes he can get a new kettle (Adam Davy/PA)

The cup run has earned the Cardinals around £300,000 – but Dowson, who revealed he will drown his sorrows in his local pub on Sunday night, has humble aims with where he wants to invest the money.

“I’ll get lashed tonight and then be back,” he said.

“(I’ll go) to the working men’s club with darts and pool. I’m not into wine bars and that rubbish. I’ll be back in tomorrow. I like to see proper people, that’s what you want.

“I’ll be able to get a new kettle for my office because at the moment I have to walk about 20 miles for a cup of tea – it took three months to get a heater.”

Troy Deeney scored for Watford
Troy Deeney scored for Watford (Andrew Matthews/PA)

Dowson also joked that he felt short-changed after handing a bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale over to Watford counterpart Javi Gracia at full-time.

“I loved locking horns with a great manager,” Gateshead-born Dowson added.

“I gave him a bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale, he bloody took it. He gave me one of his Sangria. I thought he was a bit tight. It was that big (small), the Newcastle Brown Ale was bigger.”

Gracia, meanwhile, praised Deeney for killing off Woking’s hopes of further progression after introducing his captain with 19 minutes remaining.

“I think Troy is always ready and in that moment when we need to kill the game it was the right moment to put him on and I was sure he was going to score,” he said.

“In that moment I was not looking for only his experience, I was trying to kill the game by scoring another goal and with Ken Sema playing on the left and Troy as a striker we had more options to kill the game.”

Watford manager Javi Gracia was pleased with his side
Watford manager Javi Gracia was pleased with his side (Adam Davy/PA)

Gracia’s first game as Watford boss came with a fourth-round defeat to Southampton last season but this was the Spaniard’s first experience of an FA Cup tie in such modest surroundings.

“It is true that it is a little bit different but I am happy to have the chance to live this today because it was different but an amazing experience for me and for the team,” he added.

“I think, most importantly, it was a very good performance and we knew before the game it would be very demanding but I think we killed the game in the second half but until that moment you have to know that they can score one goal from a corner or free-kick.

“I am happy with the attitude of all my players.

“To be honest I didn’t have any doubt about that before the game because I know my players and they always, in the games and the training sessions, show me their commitment and behaviour so I didn’t have any doubts.”