Eastleigh boss Richard Hill vows to fight to extend FA Cup adventure
- Published
Chris Maguire netted Eastleigh's equaliser from the penalty spot in front of the travelling hordes of Spitfires fans
Eastleigh boss Richard Hill says the Spitfires' FA Cup adventure is not about to end without a fight.
The National League side recovered from a goal down and a man down at Rodney Parade to earn a third-round replay against League Two Newport on Saturday.
They will now have home advantage and Hill has called on the public to get behind his team again and pack out the Silverlake Stadium.
Hill said: "One thing is for sure, if we go down, we'll go down fighting."
About 1,000 fans followed Hill's side over the Severn Bridge on Saturday and Hill told 大象传媒 Radio Solent: "Credit to them - they have had a right go and made a right noise.
"I think it was quite ironic that we were celebrating a draw, but I think the circumstances of the game put us in that position. [A replay] keeps the interest in the club there for another 10 days. It would be fantastic to pack the Silverlake and get them behind us for the next game.
The sides will be ball number 31 in Monday's fourth-round draw and Hill added: "I think it's a hell of an achievement for both teams to be in the draw for the fourth found. You've got to give Newport some credit, [though] they'll probably think it's a little bit of a missed opportunity against 10 men.
"The manner of the way we came back... you could arguably say we were the better team in the second half - we sailed by the seat of our pants, of course. We deserved a bit of luck for the way we went and attacked them. The replay is no foregone conclusion."
Eastleigh beat League One Reading at the Silverlake in front of more than 5,000 fans in round two last month.