Jamille Matt, the young Jamaican striker enjoying his best goalscoring season in the Football League, is ready for a ‘spicy’ Emirates FA Cup tie on Saturday.
Matt will be in Newport County’s team against Wrexham at the Racecourse on Saturday (8pm) and says: “Being a Welsh derby will add a bit of spice to the occasion.”
The 20-year-old has scored 12 goals for County this season, eight of those in League Two, and talked to iFollow Exiles after the 3-1 home win against Northampton Town.
https://twitter.com/NewportCounty/status/1067873595064557569
“You can always tell the difference before a derby,” he said. “Fans message you saying please score against them. You know you could score and become a hero because they’ll always remember you for the goal against the rivals.
“Everybody looks forward to the FA Cup. It’s a competition you watch as a kid and ultimately want to be a part of.
“This tie is on their home soil, but we’ll have a lot of fans travelling up and I’m sure we’ll turn up, give a great performance, and hopefully earn a place in the second round.
“We’re the team coming from the higher league and the pressure will probably be on us, but we’ll thrive on that. We need to puff our chests out and show why we’re where we are in League Two.
http://https://youtu.be/jctD8rvroNk
“Wrexham fans will probably be hostile towards us, we expect that, but our fans will travel in numbers and we’ll need their support. Our objective will never change, we just want to get into the next round.”
Matt was born in Kingston, Jamaica and moved to England with his family as a young child.
He has played for Fleetwood, Plymouth and Blackpool, while he is signed a two-year contract with the Exiles.
Matt took his goals tally to 12 when he netted against Northampton with Josh Sheehan and Padraig Amond completing the scoring.
“Strikers feed off goals,” says Matt. “Podge and I had a little chat before the game and said we needed to make sure we get back to what we’ve been doing well.
http://https://youtu.be/hdSS6BrEwTo
“We were both a threat to their back line and I’m buzzing that we both scored. I thrive on goals and every time I step onto the pitch I feel I’m going to score. Long may that continue.
“The gaffer (Michael Flynn) knew about me before I signed. I played against him when I scored a hat-trick for Kidderminster against County a few years ago (see video below).
“He knew from that game how I like to play and at previous clubs maybe I haven’t been used in that way.
“The gaffer has worked with me he’s playing to my strengths.”
http://https://youtu.be/zZhEO6A0fxA
Matt was delighted that Sheehan and Amond also scored, saying: “I’m buzzing for Sheezy. When you get him on the ball moving forward, there aren’t many better than him in our league with the ball.
“He won six headers in midfield, made some crucial challenges, played passes and when he performs like that it’s a joy to play alongside him.
“We all know what Podge is about. He’s an unbelievable finisher and that was a brilliant finish after a brilliant move.
“I was delighted for Podge because he does a lot of unselfish work for the team.”
Both Newport and Wrexham are intent on promotion. Flynn’s Newport are fourth in League Two, while Wrexham are third in the Vanarama National League.
The all-Welsh cup tie is at Wrexham’s Racecourse stadium on Saturday, December 1 (8pm) and will be shown live on BT Sport 1.
The FA have issued a live broadcast fee of £75,000 to each club and the winners will receive £54,000 from the prize fund.