Clarke targets 'best amateur competition in the country'

The Merseyside club reached the Final after coming from behind to beat Chapeltown Fforde Grene 2-1 in the semi-final and Clarke is looking forward to leading his side out at Ewood Park.

"I think it’s a great achievement for myself, as I’m still only a young lad in managerial terms," he said.

"It’s my third season as manager and from a personal point of view it’s a great achievement.

"There are more experienced managers than me around that haven’t achieved this, so to do it in my third full season as manager is great."

Midlanders OJM will be the fourth team Campfield have faced who are in their debut season in the Sunday Cup, and it has not been an easy ride for Clarke’s men so far.

Campfield started this year’s campaign with a close fought 3-2 win over Cup new boys Poulton Royal followed by back-to-back extra-time victories over another two debutants.

In the second round, Windmill Kestrels took them all the way to penalties after a 1-1 draw at West Lancashire College Stadium.

Campfield boss Anthony Clarke embraces one of his players after the semi-final

Then first-timers Attenborough Cavaliers took a 3-2 lead over Campfield on Merseyside before an injury-time free-kick equaliser took the tie to extra time, with the hosts scoring the all-important seventh goal to reach the next round.

But despite their opponents’ situation, Clarke believes that his side go into The Final as underdogs.

"We’ve had a look at a few of the results but even though it’s their debut season, I still possibly think they’re coming in as the favourites," added the 32-year-old.

"I’ve read an interview from their manager saying they’ve got a lot of ex-pro players playing for them, so obviously they must be a good team, with a good standard and good set-up."

Campfield only managed one win by more than a single goal in the run up to the Final when they beat Pineapple 4-2 in the fourth round, but Clarke believes even the best teams do things the hard way.

"I think every game that we’ve played, we’ve gone in thinking it would be a walk in the park and we’ve been left kicking ourselves," he said.

"It’s going to be hard, some teams just have a thing about them where they do everything the hard way.

Campfield are hoping to win their first FA Sunday Cup title

"Some of the best teams in the world, never mind amateur football, have had to do it the hard way sometimes."

And Clarke admits preparing for the Sunday Cup Final can be difficult, but that he will be trying to approach it as he would for any other game.

"I think it would be impossible to treat it as just another game because it is the best amateur competition you can play," he said.

"But in terms of preparation, we’ll go about it in the same way we have in any other round.

"We’ll train during the week as much as we can, play every Sunday all gearing up to play on 26 April.

"We train either Wednesday or Thursday depending on the lads’ availability with work, so I just go for the night when the majority can make it."