Cowan's delight as Brackley set up Notts County tie with six of the best

The Saints felt they should have got the job done in the tie at Woking last Saturday, but that clash ended in a 1-1 draw.

Brackley went behind early on in the replay at St James Park and were pegged back after leading 2-1, but they eventually put their 10-man opponents to the sword in the second period.

Matt Lowe and Danny Waldron both scored twice on the night, with Scott Pollock and Kyle Morrison also netting late on.

And Cowan said: "Hopefully it's going to be the catalyst for us going on and being really clinical and decisive.

"I don't think there was too much difference in our performance from a lot of our other games, but the difference was goals.

"There's never a bad time to score a goal so hopefully we can go on and continue to be really ruthless in front of goal, which we were here.

"There were some brilliant moves, approach play, deliveries, finishing and desire to put the ball in the back of the net. It's what we've been yearning for.

"We did it really well and I'm really pleased with the players.

"We know how strong we are out of possession and we asked the players to be a bit braver.

"I would take some of the blame for the two goals they scored because we got caught twice and we're learning.

"Woking are a really good team and it's real credit to my staff because we've worked tirelessly since Saturday and we haven't had a training session. We got the players on a Zoom call on Monday night.

"When you go up against managers like Neal Ardley, it's hard work.

"It's been a good lesson to learn from someone of his level because he's very tactically astute.

"It just felt like my players had that desire to work hard, we were on the front foot and key moments were where it really mattered."

The win against Woking means Brackley have now booked their place in the FA Cup first round.

The Saints will host League Two outfit Notts County in a huge tie on Saturday, November 1.

And Cowan, who takes his side to Gateshead for a National League match on Saturday, said: "I'm a compartmentalist so I will just think about the Gateshead game but I know the fans will be really looking forward to that (Notts County) game.

"We just keep creating memories and it's been an extraordinary couple of years.

"We'll work really hard to understand how they play, we'll do our due diligence and it will have to be a monstrous effort on the day because we're welcoming a Football League club.

"It's brilliant memories for the fans and the club.

"It's a great day again and we won't be there just to make up the numbers.

"From a fan perspective, I understand how amazing it is."