Faili: We won't let Rye bully us

THERE is no love lost between Three Bridges and Rye United but the teams are set to lock horns once again on Tuesday night with a place in the final of the RUR Charity Cup at stake.

As well as both sides challenging for the league title, it seems like Rye and Bridges have faced each other unfeasibly often in various cup competitions over the last two seasons.

And the games have a habit of turning a bit feisty.

Last season, Bridges beat Rye in a tense John O'Hara Cup final.

And already this season Rye earned a humiliating 3-0 win over Bridges in the league, before Bridges knocked Rye out of the FA Vase, a competition in which Rye had been relying on doing well.

And now the teams have drawn each other yet again in the Charity Cup semi-final.

It is being held at Lancing, with Rye already starting the pre-match wars of words, labelling Bridges "Three Budgies" on their Twitter feed.

But Paul Faili is unimpressed with United's attempts at unsettling his team.

"If they want to come down to our game with blow up 'bang sticks' let them," he said of the Twitter threats. "I seem to remember Rye having those sticks at the John O'Hara Cup final, and it didn't do them much good there.

"Every couple of years there comes along a team who just hate Three Bridges because we are Three Bridges, or we are from Crawley.

"There are always going to be teams who don't like us, but we don't let it bother us."

However, Faili insists he gets on well with Rye boss Scott Price.

"Scott is a particularly nice guy, and if you take away all the controversy on the pitch - the tackles, the stitches my strikers need afterwards, and the nasty comments - then you have two good footballing sides," Faili said.

"Rye are a particularly difficult side to play and I think that is because they like to bully sides.

"Unfortunately, at Bridges we don't let ourselves be bullied which is probably why Rye don't like us."

Bridges are without midfielder Joel O'Hara for the semi-final.

Due to the weather, Bridges haven't played a competitive game for more than two weeks, however, with the semi-final and some vital league games coming up, Faili has ensured his players have kept up their fitness.

"It is important that just because of the snow we don't stop," Faili explained.

"I had a call from Simon Wormull at Lewes and we had a good friendly with them on Saturday that ended 0-0.

"It was a nice run-out and knowing we were playing a higher level team we pressed Lewes that little bit more.

"We have also been doing boxercise, which is good for the upper body as well as movement and fitness, and a bit of gym work."

The RUR Charity Cup semi-final is a 7.45pm kick-off on Tuesday at Lancing, before that Bridges host Crowborough Athletic at Jubilee Field on Saturday.