City will head to Wembley aiming to win a second domestic cup of the season, with the game sandwiched in between two important league fixtures in the title race. Cushing explained his pride at the consistency of his squad’s winning nature over the past years.
READ | Match Report: Late winner sees City through to FA Cup Final
“I think for us, I said before the game I’m proud that it’s the sixth straight season that we’re still playing for everything, come April we’re still playing for trophies. This year we’ve won the continental cup and qualified for a Champions League place and now we have the opportunity to try and win the FA Cup.”
No less that eight of our starting lineup today played at Wembley the last time we won the FA Cup, and the manager was pleased with the balance of their experience and the new players who have been added to the squad.
“I think you look at Houghton, Beattie, Stokes, Bardsley, McManus, they’ve been here years but one thing I think we’ve done well here is we bring in players and we put a really high demand on them to keep us winning” said Cushing. “That improves them but also gives a bit of pressure. If you look at Weir, Emslie, Hemp, Beckie they haven’t competed for trophies before, but we put that demand on them and say look, you have to keep winning, and they do that.
“Ultimately, that wins you games, because that want to win and desire means when its tough, you’ve just got to cope and you’ve just got to soak it up.”
Whilst delighted at the win, the manager showed his empathy for the opposition after a late own goal saw the current FA Cup holders Chelsea bow out of this year’s competition.
“We’re ecstatic to be in an FA Cup final, and I have a huge respect for Chelsea and the way that Emma runs that team and has developed a winning team.
“I feel for them a little bit because I’ve been there, in 2015 Ji scored in the 82nd minute, in 2016 Ji scored again in the 91st minute and Frank Kirby scored in the 120th minute, so I’ve been there.”
