Coyle wants FA Cup win for Nat

Coyle wants FA Cup win for Nat

Published Mar. 11, 2011 12:15 p.m. ET

Nat Lofthouse, who died at the age of 85 in January, scored 255 goals for the Trotters and served the club for much of his life, but it was the 1958 FA Cup final, where he scored both goals in a 2-0 triumph over Manchester United, that represented perhaps his finest Bolton moment. Wanderers have not won the FA Cup since but they can take another step towards ending their long wait when they face Carling Cup winners Birmingham in the quarter-finals on Saturday, with the victors guaranteed a trip to Wembley. Coyle said: "Everybody knows how sad everybody was with Nat's passing. But I think it's important we remembered all the good things that he brought not only to the football club but also the community. "It would be lovely to achieve that, but we know there's some difficult obstacles in the way. But we'll do everything we can to try to progress, and if it all came together then obviously it would be a marvellous occasion." Blues boss Alex McLeish insists his side will be fully committed to trying to reach the semi-finals despite being involved in a Premier League relegation battle. He said: "The league is more important to us. There is no doubt about it. "But I owe it to the Birmingham fans to play the strongest team available. "It might not be strong enough to win. I could play my best team against Bolton, and we could still lose because they are a good side. "We could lose but we don't plan to. We are going to try to win this game." The likes of Kevin Phillips, Matt Derbyshire, Stuart Parnaby, David Murphy and Curtis Davies will come under consideration for a start against Coyle's side.

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