Mathews cautious ahead of Carmarthen return

Longford boss Alan Mathews is determined complacency will not set in among his players despite their 2-0 advantage over Carmarthen.

The sides meet in the second leg of their UEFA Cup first qualifying round in Wales tonight and Mathews wants his team to approach the game sensibly.

“The day you start thinking about the next round, or who you will play, is the day you get knocked out," declared Mathews.

“We have no inclination to think about anything other than playing against Carmarthen.”

Longford have an excellent knock-out pedigree and have won back-to-back FAI Cup triumphs and the eircom League Cup in the last two years.

Mathews believes their travelling support also have a role to play if they are to progress. “There are hundreds of supporters who are making the trip over,” he said.

“We have got very good support and it is a great lift for the players when you have your home support and when you see the effort people make. It gives us a boost and hopefully we can get them a result.”

Carmarthen manager Mark Jones will resist the temptation of solely focusing on attack against Longford.

Jones is aware conceding another goal would mean his side would need four strikes to progress – and he wants to strike a balance between attack and defence.

Jones said: “The game is over if they get it as we would have to win 4-1 – you have got to be aggressive but there is no point in being gung-ho – they are good at hitting people on the break. I will be very surprised if there are more than two goals in the match.”

Longford are expected to take 2,000 fans to Wales, so Jones his called on the home fans to play their part.

He said: “To be honest, they are expecting a huge turnout – 50% of the crowd - and they will be very vocal like they were in the first leg. So we are hoping our fans can get behind us.”

Goals either side of half-time from Stephen Paisley and Barry Ferguson ensured an advantage for the FAI Cup holders.