Striker Paul Chow will always be remembered as the man who scored the fastest ever goal at Wembley but he has revealed that the goal, coming after just 21 seconds in the 2010 Vase Final against Wroxham was, perhaps surprisingly, not the favourite goal of his career.
Along with Lee Kerr, Paul scored in all three Wembley Finals, though he went one better than his illustrious strike partner by scoring twice in the 2011 Final, getting the late winner against Coalville.
Bay’s second top scorer of all time with 270 goals has just retired but he will be putting on his boots again for this special occasion.
He told the club website “I’m really looking forward to this weekend’s 10 year FA Vase reunion. It’ll be great to catch up with all the lads again and share a dressing room with so many top Northern League players. Although I’m excited to pull on my boots at Hillheads, playing in Robbie’s memory will make it very special. Hopefully a healthy crowd will help towards the collection for his family.
“Reminiscing about the Vase glory days is one of my favourite pastimes. A few of my memories from the first FA Vase victory…. Standing in the centre circle 90 minutes before kick off and just trying to take it all in…. Looking at the size of the stands and imagining it full….It was quite daunting. Thankfully those feelings subsided at kick off. The time it takes for the roar to reach you from the fans seems to take an eternity. It was probably only milliseconds but it seems a hell of a lot longer. I’ve scored hundreds of goals during my career and that first goal at Wembley is my favourite. Everyone asks about the 21 seconds goal and I will always get reminded of that one as it put my name in the record books. But that first goal meant so much. Having reached the semi final 12 months earlier and been so close to playing at Wembley and at the time thinking we would never get that close again, to get there the following season to score and win the trophy was unbelievable.”
*A special souvenir programme is being produced and will be on sale at the game price £1.50. Anyone unable to attend can buy a copy for £2.50 which includes postage. For details contact wbfcinfo@gmail.com
