JACK Pritchard couldn’t get a game in his preferred position last season with his old club.

“I played at right-back, and found it hard to convince the manager I could do a job at centre-half,” he said.

“When I came here that was my only objective – to get picked as often as possible in the middle.

“Luckily I’ve managed to do that, and have plenty of games under my belt.”

He left Congleton Town to join 1874 Northwich last summer.

His Bears teammates appreciated his efforts, and chose him as their player of the previous season.

It was almost enough to persuade him to stay.

But the 22-year-old has no regrets now.

After kicking a ball as a boy for Vale Juniors on Back Lane playing fields, his next game on Saturday will decide whether he gets to perform at Wembley for the FA Vase final.

He said “As a kid, you dream of football becoming your job.

“Obviously that changes as you get older, and you have to be realistic!

“For a lad playing in non-league, having a shot at playing at Wembley is almost as good as it gets.

“Think about it; more than 600 clubs hoped they might be in the position I’m in, and there’s four left.”

He told the Guardian it had been a topic of conversation in the car with Scott McGowan, 1874’s leading scorer, on the way to training and matches in recent weeks.

He insists those conversations haven’t made him feel under pressure.

“Like me, he’s never played in a game like this one,” added Pritchard.

“And he’s been scoring goals at this level for a long time!

“It was only my 22nd birthday a couple of weeks back, and it’s something that’s come along at the start of my career.”

He revealed that exchanges with the team’s senior players have been pivotal in his improvement as a player.

After last Saturday’s first leg, he spoke to Danny Meadowcroft about how he might handle Thatcham striker Shane Cooper-Clark – who has more than 40 goals to his name in the Kingfishers’ colours this season – differently second time around.

The former Northwich Victoria and Witton Albion defender, part of a Morecambe squad that won promotion to the Football League for the first time in 2007, was a regular alongside Pritchard before an injury disrupted his campaign.

They compare notes regularly.

“Meads does a job that’s unseen, and yet it’s so important,” he said.

“He’d love to be playing more often, I’m sure of it, but he never puts himself first.

“I’ve had major help from him, and when I think I’ve not done myself justice, he’s there to pick me up again.”

The trust he has had from Paul Bowyer and Wayne Goodison, 1874’s management duo, has boosted his confidence too.

They have Ryan Mitchell and Danny Thomas as alternative options in defence – both of them popular among the club’s supporters – and Pritchard feared for his place when the former returned.

He need not have worried though.

“Bow and Goody have created an atmosphere in which nobody thinks about themselves,” he added.

“There is competition for places, and everybody knows they can’t slack off.”

“Knowing that they believe in me has been massive though, and I hope I’ve repaid the faith they’ve put in me.”

1874 Northwich host Thatcham, from the Hellenic League’s Premier Division, in the second leg this weekend.

Their opponents won the first meeting by a single goal, scored from the penalty-spot.

1874 were not at their best, and were grateful to goalkeeper Greg Hall for making their task less daunting when Thatcham arrive in town.

Pritchard said: “We can play better, and that’s disappointing.

“It was a strange one on the bus journey home; we hate losing, and we came off the field feeling disappointed.

“But when I woke up on Sunday I thought: ‘it’s not so bad’.”

He insists everything is still to play for and that Northwich supporters, who numbered close to 300 in last Saturday’s crowd, can do their bit to influence the outcome.

“The fans were immense,” he added.

“It’s frightening to see numbers like that travel so far to watch a team playing at our level.

“They can make a difference when we play again.

“It’s happened already – look at the FA Cup games at Mossley and Ossett earlier this season.

“Players don’t just say it helps them for no reason – it really can give you a lift at certain moments.

“We’ve got a great record [at Witton] this season, and fond memories already of knocking out other teams there on this run.

“I’m desperate for us to add Thatcham’s name to that list.”