MALVERN Town are into the third round of the Buildbase FA Vase after a 1-0 win over 10-man Atherstone Town on Saturday.

The game was played behind closed doors due to Atherstone being in a tier three area but that did not dampen the mood as Town exacted revenge following last season’s 10-0 defeat against the same opposition.

Matt Turner’s 17th-minute penalty and a red card to Adders’ Kyle Baxter before the half-hour mark proved the crucial moments as Malvern battled through and will now face Midland Football League Premier Division leaders Sporting Khalsa at home in the third-round.

Co-manager Lee Hooper was beaming post-match and and applauded his side’s attitude throughout.

“It was all about getting the win, no matter what,” he said.

“After what happened to us here last year, we needed that.

“Our lads were tremendous and really dug deep; we put our bodies on the line and when they did get through, Keiron made top saves.

“We know that we can do much better but we’re in the hat for the third round and that’s what counts.

“The fans would have loved this and that’s the disappointment but hopefully they can be here for the next round because we miss the outstanding support that they give us home and away.”

Match-winner Turner also referred to the conditions in his post-match interview but admits it was an "unbelievable" team performance.

“I loved being back out there,” said Turner.

“It’s been a long time coming and what a big game it was to come back into after just one training session since our last game at the end of October.

“The result was fantastic; it wasn’t our prettiest performance by any means, the pitch and weather did us no favours, but it was just great to be back out there again with the lads and the spirit showed by everyone got us the win - it was an unbelievable team performance."

Turner emphasised the effort put in by his team as Town kept their Wembley dream alive.

"It was possibly the most resolute defensive display I have seen from us," he added.

"Shout out to Keiron [Blackburn] who was class on the day and I thought Jay [Sauntson] was also top quality.

“Obviously it was nice to score what proved to be the winner, but it was the defensive display that earned us this result as we limited them to very few clear-cut chances.

“We had a good run in this competition last year and the confidence and support grew with each new round.

"It would be great to have another memorable run this year but we’ll just take each round as it comes.

“It was just a shame that our fans weren’t able to be there to celebrate with us on Saturday.

"I am sure they would have helped to push us on, although it wouldn’t have been good for the heart rate of some of them, especially towards the end!