If he’s again to be kept awake at night in the coming weeks, he hopes it’s because of Wembley excitement rather than the frustration of what might have been.
Lee came within a whisker of leading Hartlepool United to the Papa John’s Trophy final in 2022, eventually missing out after a penalty shoot-out loss to Rotherham United, who were flying high in League One at the time.
Pools very nearly defied the odds that day, and that’s what Spennymoor Town are out to do when they head for Rochdale for their very first FA Trophy semi-final this afternoon.
Spennymoor are the lowest ranked team in the last four but they knocked out National League Sutton in the last round and sent Boston packing earlier in the competition.
Lee absolutely believes his in-form side can win at the Crown Oil Arena this afternoon (3pm kick-off), but says the overriding emotion will be pride regardless of the outcome.
“You can feel the buzz of what we’ve done so far and what it means to the club and the town,” he said.
“I think there are 800 or 900 people going already what we know. The town is already buzzing about the semi final. To get to a final would just be immense. It’s exciting.”
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With today’s game on the horizon, it would be understandable if Spennymoor had taken their eye off the ball in the league. But the opposite has happened. Moors have won five of their last six games to claw themselves back into the play-off mix, and are now just three points shy of the top seven with five games to play.
Lee said: “When you sit down at the start of the season and discuss what you want to achieve, you think of the FA Cup, we just missed out on getting to the first round proper; the Trophy, we wanted a good run and we’re in the semis and 90 minutes away from Wembley. And we wanted to reach the play-offs and we’re still in contention with that.
“We’re at the back end of the season now with a hell of a lot to play for and that’s exactly what we wanted. It’s going well. This game is just exciting.
“The pressure is on Rochdale. They’re the biggest club left in. But who’d have said we’d have beaten Sutton? It’s been a tough run but the lads keep stepping up and we have one more game, you never know.
“I’ve said it all day long, we have a squad and group of players who can give anyone a game.”
Lee has done a fine job since taking charge at Spennymoor in January last year. He joined Moors with the blessing of Marske United, where he’d had an enjoyable stint in the dugout before the Teesside non-league club found themselves fighting for survival because of financial issues.
He has a cluster of former Middlesbrough youngsters in his squad, including talented goalkeeper Brad James, defender Ben Beales, who followed Lee to Marske and then Spennymoor, and Matty Dolan, who was in the academy ranks at Boro when Lee took his first steps into coaching. Dolan had a fine career in the professional game and once scored an FA Cup equaliser for Newport against Boro.
Also in Lee’s ranks is Glen Taylor, Spennymoor’s legendary striker who is now 34 but still scoring prolifically.
“He’s a top, top striker, his record shows that,” said Lee of Taylor.
“He looks after himself, he’s a machine and he’ll keep going for the next couple of years, no doubt.
“He’s an absolute dream centre forward for a manager. He doesn’t just score goals, he shots himself all over, he works his socks off, he covers more ground than any centre forward I’ve ever worked with. He’s not just a goalscorer, he’s a machine who does a fantastic job all-round.”
It’s only a few years ago that Rochdale were in League One and playing domestic cup ties against Newcastle and Manchester United.
“This feels exciting, it’s a one off game,” says Lee.
“I have every belief and confidence in my players. I know they’ll give everything possible.
“Will I have sleepless nights after? I hope I do and I hope it’s because we’ve won and the excitement of Wembley.”
