DANNY Cowley says he wants to make Concord Rangers into the “biggest non-league club in Essex”.

The Beachboys boss revealed he turned down the chance to manager Chelmsford City last week because he still has a burning ambition to turn the growing island club into a powerhouse in local football.

Speaking after Concord beat Chelmsford in a penalty shoot-out on Tuesday, Cowley said: “I still feel there are miles left in this job.

“Seven years ago nobody thought we’d be the biggest club on the island. Now – in terms of league position – we are.

“The next challenge for me is for us to be the biggest non-league club in Essex. That is not going to happen over night, but you’ve got to think big, and that’s what we’re doing.

“We’ve got a long way to go to make that happen, but this is the third year we’ve beaten Chelmsford in the Essex Senior Cup, and I think we should be proud of that.”

Cowley made five changes to the side which lost in the FA Trophy at Gosport on Saturday, and Chelmsford drew first blood on Tuesday as Robert Edmans’ lucky block from a clearance sent the ball past home keeper Jamie Butler and into the net on seven minutes.

But Concord dominated their Skrill South rivals for the rest of the match and equalised with seven min-utes to go when substitute Leon Gordon clipped the ball past keeper Tommy Forecast.

After three spot kicks each in the shoot-out it looked bleak for Concord, who had seen two penalties saved by Forecast, but home keeper Jamie Butler dramatically turned the tide with three brilliant saves to put Concord in the last eight for the fourth time in the past five seasons.