I've seen Brackley this season - I had a ride up to Gresley as soon as the cup draw came out and I watched their replay in the last round. I don't want these words to come back and haunt me, but on the evidence of that night I don't think they are any better than they were last season. They had more of the ball than Gresley and they created more chances, but most of their efforts on goal were more like rugby conversions. The greenhouses and sheds in the adjacent gardens were more at risk than the Gresley goal. Gresley didn't offer much as an attacking force either, and so it only took one Brackley goal to win the game. As an attacking force, we will be offer a much bigger threat than Gresley did.
It won't be an easy game - Billy Turley is probably the most experienced goalkeeper in our league, and the centre back Ryan Austin (ex Burton Albion) ought to be playing at a higher level than Skrill North. The midfielder Reid is a good player with recent Football League experience and Charlie Griffin is a proven goalscorer. But man-for-man, I'm not yet convinced that it'd be worthwhile swapping any of our players for any of theirs. Greg Kaziboni didn't really impress at Corby last season, and Galinski and Piergianni will know all about his strengths and weaknesses ahead of Saturday. On the day as well we will probably be as well supported as Brackley (I expect Turley to make more noise than the home fans) - so hopefully it'll be more like a home game for us.
