IAN Long believes Tividale can win the Walsall Senior Cup outright following last night’s dramatic 5-4 victory on penalties against Romulus at Coles Lane.

Tivi now face either Bolehall Swifts or Chasetown at The Beeches at the Semi-Final stage with the final to be held at Walsall’s Banks’s Stadium on April 27th.

And the former Tipton Town boss was delighted with the effort and determination of his players.

He said “It was a fantastic victory.

“Credit to the lads who stepped up to take the penalties – it’s not easy.

“We weren’t at our best in open play but we’ve come through a really tough tie away from home and that was our third consecutive clean sheet.

“The courage of this group of players is exceptional and that’s clear for everyone to see.”

Long, 39, who watched the first half of last night’s game from the stands has challenged his players to finish their domestic league schedule strongly but believes both the Walsall Senior and JW Hunt Cup’s present two great opportunities to bring silverware back to Tividale between now and the end of the season.

He added “Our league form is still very important and the players are aware of that – we won’t be taking our foot off the pedal by any stretch of the imagination.

“But, we remain in two great cup competitions and after the shenanigans of last season with the Walsall Senior Cup and our disqualification, it would be fantastic to get to the final at the Banks’s Stadium.

“We also have our Quarter-Final tie in the JW Hunt Cup with Sporting Khalsa on the horizon, too.”