Thornton delight at first class Norfolk display

Norfolk manager Ian Thornton was overcome with pride after masterminding the county's first FA County Youth Final triumph at Stoke's Britannia Stadium.

Thornton, who represented the County as a teenager, saw his team outplay Staffordshire on Saturday afternoon as his side became the first Norfolk outfit to win at national level.

"I'm extremely proud," he said. "It was absolutely different class. The boys' conduct on and off the pitch has been exemplary all the way through. We saw a very good Norfolk side play very, very well today. We encourage good football, keeping the ball on the floor and passing it.

"All week everybody was saying to come here and enjoy it, but that annoyed me. I wanted to win and then we could enjoy it.

"I'm extremely proud to go back to Norfolk as national champions."

Victory had looked a distant prospect when Staffordshire took an early lead, but a combination of superb passing play and an iron will saw Norfolk run out 4-2 winners.

"It was a very scrappy goal to concede but after that we played our game and played to our standards," Thornton added. "I think [Nathan Howard's] quick goal at the start of the second half really killed the game off."

Captain Sam Borrer shone in the Norfolk midfield, but he was quick to pay tribute to his team-mates.

"It's a pleasure to be part of this team," Borrer said. "It's never say never with our boys.

"At the end of the day it's a team effort and the whole team played a part. The defence, midfield, attack, goalkeeper; they were all superb today."

Nathan Howard, Norfolk's two-goal hero, was also full of praise for a team that held firm in difficult conditions.

"Stoke are known for their long throws and Staffordshire were no different today," Howard added. "They were a problem for us early on here but after their [first] goal we dealt with them and played our game.

"We came here and did our best and we've won, but we did it the hard way. We had opportunities and we maybe could have scored a few more goals. It would have been nice to score a hat-trick but I'm happy enough with the two!"