Hebburn Town eye quick return to Wembley following FA Vase win against Liversedge

The visitors arrived at the Green Energy Sports Ground looking to continue their own impressive run in the competition after seeing off the likes of Newcastle Benfield, Guisborough Town and Ryhope CW to reach the last 32.

But it was Hebburn that struck first on the half-hour as Amar Purewal rose to meet a corner from Michael Richardson and powered a header beyond Sedge goalkeeper Jordan Porter.

The lead was short-lived as veteran striker Tom Greaves got in behind the Hebburn defence to calmly grab an equaliser just four minutes after Purewal’s opener.

However, it was to be Kevin Bolam’s side that secured a fifth round home time against North West Counties League club Congleton Town.

McKeown grabbed the winning goal 20 minutes from time as found space on the edge of the area and curled a low shot beyond the desperate dive of Porter.

The midfielder reflected on a battling display and admitted the Hornets squad are already targeting a second visit to Wembley in May.

“I just wanted to make contact with the ball because I was out of breath a bit to be honest,” explained the former North Shields man.

“I didn’t make the connection I would have liked but it has gone into the far corner, so it’s happy days really.

“We are into the next round and we are definitely focusing on trying to get to another Vase final.

“There is no reason why we can’t have a go, there is no reason why we can’t keep improving once we get even more game-time under our belts.

“It was hard work, and it was a first full game in a while for a lot of the lads in the side.

“We have got through it and we just look to move on to the next one.

“It was a physical game, they gave us a severe test, and we are just grateful to have come through that and got into the next round.”

Next up for Hebburn is their Durham Challenge Cup quarter-final at Birtley Town on Wednesday night.

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