Burton Albion manager Gary Bowyer reflects after his side faced Sheffield United icon Billy Sharp in the FA Cup first round at the Pirelli on Saturday.

The Brewers defeated Sharp’s Diamonds 4-0, although the scoreline flattered the home-side.

The former Blade announced his retirement last month before he agreed to play for the Diamonds after their usual striker, James Clifton, was suspended for the tie.

The 40-year-old didn’t look out of shape, and found himself in dangerous positions throughout the match, but ultimately failed to score.

As the match was an FA Cup tie, it was a final opportunity for the joint all-time leading Championship goal scorer to hit the 300 goal milestone, but he will be hanging up the boots (again) having to settle for the 299, once more.

At full-time, Bowyer spoke to The Star and assessed Sharp’s performance.

He said: “I was managing against Rushton, so we had to make sure that we were prepared for everything, and not just Billy Sharp.

“They got here without Billy Sharp, so we had to respect everything that Rushden gave, and I thought the manager had got them all really well organised.”

Sharp was involved in sparks of attacks that gave the travelling fans hope that he could get on the scoresheet.

“I thought that they were terrific, I thought they had a good spell, the start of the second half, and so from that point of view, we weathered that little bit of storm, and I thought their fans were amazing, creating a real cup tie.

“Non-league team against their League One team, and you're here for a reason aren't you, you ain't here to see Burton win, so we know that, we were professional today and the most important thing was getting through.”

When asked for a comment on Sharp’s performance, he replied: “ He didn't score did he, so we did our job.”