The players answered coach Cassidy’s call for a quickfire start with Jake Prince, a Luke Campbell penalty and Sol Solomon putting Jersey three goals ahead within the first 15 minutes.
In the second half, either side of Louis Gorman’s consolation for West Cheshire, Soloman and Luca Margaroli wrapped up a 5-1 victory.
It was the perfect way for the Jersey team to mark Liberation Day in winning the cup – which had been interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic – for the first time since 2012.
‘In the first half we decided to go for it early and try and break them down,’ said Cassidy.
‘The players delivered on the gameplan perfectly and we took our chances.
‘We made West Cheshire look very average in the first half and they came out in the second and changed things and had a go and our goalkeeper had to make three or four really good saves.
‘But we got the job done and I’m really proud of my players, who deserve so much credit.’
The only disappointment from an exciting cup run stretching over 590 days is that Jersey will not be competing in the UEFA Regions Cup, which is the normal reward for the competition’s winners.
‘It’s such a shame as our team has an average age of 25 and could have done a really good job in that competition on behalf of England,’ added Cassidy.
‘They are a great group to work with and take everything on board and they deserve this trophy after coming through five challenging ties.
‘It’s taken a long time to get here but to play the football that they have is pretty special and it’s great to win the cup on such a historical day for Jersey.’
Midfielder Adam Trotter was equally delighted and feels it was important that the Jersey side managed to lift some silverware.
‘This has been a few years coming both in terms of this competition and the squad in general as we haven’t been as successful as we could have been in the last few years,’ he said.
‘Maybe that was down to a bit of bad luck and lack of tournament experience but we have finally got there and it’s an incredible feeling.
‘You don’t get these kind of occasions too often and there was a time when we didn’t know if we would get the semi final and final played so it’s great that we have managed to come through to win it.’
Jersey FA CEO David Kennedy was among the delegation to have made the trip to see the Island’s footballers clinch the trophy in some style.
‘This has been a difficult year for everyone in football and we wondered if we would get to play these games, so hopefully it’s a sign we are coming out of the back end of the pandemic,’ he said.
‘To come back and play as well as they did in the semi final and final is a great credit to the players and Martin and his staff who have done a fantastic job.’
