Five stories to watch in the FA Cup this weekend

Many NPL sides will be aiming to follow in the footsteps of Marine, Whitby Town and Worksop Town, who made the first round proper whilst in the division last season. 

Three wins is all that stands between them and the first round in November.

Below, we’ve compiled five key stories that may catch the eye of a neutral fan in this season's second qualifying round.
 

Dad vs Lad

The headlines when the second qualifying round was made were taken by the Spooner family.

Hyde United manager Nicky Spooner will take his Tigers 56 miles west to National League North side Southport where, coincidentally, his son Callum plays.

This won’t be the first time this has happened in the FA Cup. In January 2014, Brendan Rodgers was in the Liverpool dugout to face Oldham Athletic, where his son Anton was an 83rd-minute substitute.

Callum Spooner made 102 appearances under his father at Hyde, before departing in the summer to make the move up to Step 2.

He has settled in well at his new side, starting all-but-one of the club’s eight league games so far, with the Sandgrounders sitting two points outside the play-offs.

Hyde are aiming to go one better than their back-to-back sixth-placed finishes in the last two campaigns and finish in the NPL play-offs. A win against a National League North mainstay will give them an early confidence boost this season.

Robbie Savage’s unbeaten record put to the test

The only side unbeaten in all competitions in the Northern Premier League’s top division this season is Macclesfield.

Robbie Savage has enjoyed a near-perfect start to life in management, despite games against six of the other nine sides currently in the league's top 10, as the Silkmen look to right the wrongs of their play-off final defeat last season.

This weekend they take on South Shields for the first time in their history.

As they aim to be playing in the National League North next season, a home tie against the side currently 12th in the division above provides a good test, and Savage will hope to go through his first 10 competitive games in the dugout without tasting defeat.

South Shields, currently in their second season at Step 2, finished only a point off the play-offs last season, scoring the third-most goals in the league. This season so far, they’ve split their wins and losses through the opening eight games.

Shields have performed well in the FA Cup recently, making the first round proper in two of the last four seasons. The NPL leaders will be aiming to stop their bid for a third in five on Saturday.

Mossley the giant killers? 

Fifty-three places separate Mossley from their second qualifying round opponents in the footballing pyramid, as David Fish’s Mossley welcome National League North Chorley to Steel Park.

Taking away the two cancelled seasons due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Chorley have made the National League North play-offs in four of the last five seasons and have started this campaign in the same vein, sitting third after eight games.

Mossley have so far put three opponents to the wayside, having entered in the extra preliminary round.

In the last round, they took NPL side Whitby Town to a replay, then battled back from 2-0 down in the replay to force extra-time before winning on penalties.

Mossley haven’t reached the third qualifying round since the 2010/11 season, where they were knocked out by Darlington in the fourth qualifying round. Chorley have made it out of the qualifying rounds four times in that time, and made the fourth round in 2020/21.

The NPL West Division side will have it all to do against the Magpies, but a win over the third-highest ranked side in the competition at this current point will certainly steal the headlines.

Can managerless Blyth survive NWCFL heavyweights?

Blyth Spartans picked up their first league win of the season in midweek against Workington, and they will be looking to make it two in a row when they host NWCFL Bury FC.

Blyth needed a replay to dispatch another Step 5 side in Campion in the first qualifying round, while Bury defeated NPL East Division side Garforth Town.

The Shakers have so far defeated three Step 4 sides to get to this point, with wins against NPL West outfits Congleton Town and Avro coming before their trip to Wheatley Park.

Despite winning the competition twice, this will be the first time that Bury have played in the FA Cup second qualifying round.

Managed by former Warrington Rylands and Macclesfield boss Dave McNabb, Bury are yet to lose in their opening 13 games in all competitions this season, scoring an impressive 41 goals.

Blyth were victorious in the only other meeting between the two sides in November 1995, when they won 2-0 in the cup’s first round.

They’ll be looking to keep their 100% record against Saturday’s visitors, whilst avoiding being the second NPL Premier Division side to be knocked out by a team in the NWCFL, after Barnoldswick Town were victorious in their replay against Lancaster City in the previous stage of the competition.

David vs Goliath

Given the split between the north and south of the country in the opening three qualifying rounds, the highest-ranked side currently in the competition are National League North side Scunthorpe United.

They travel to Newcastle Town of the NPL West Division in the second qualifying round.

Following back-to-back relegations, the Iron enjoyed a successful first season in the National League North that ended just short of promotion due to a penalty shootout defeat to eventual play-off winners Boston United in the semi-finals.

They’ve started this season ruthlessly, conceding only twice in eight games, winning six and sitting atop the league as the only remaining unbeaten side.

Still, Scunthorpe haven’t had the best of luck in the FA Cup recently. The last time they won a match in the competition was in November 2018, and they’ve exited the cup in their first game during each of the last five seasons. Last season, they exited in the second qualifying round against Brackley Town.

Newcastle Town have defeated three opponents so far in the competition but are yet to face a side in the division above them.

It’ll be a huge task for Neil Baker’s side, who sit 17th in the division, level on points with the early relegation places. 

However, like Mossley, an upset win will provide one of the early giant-killings that the FA Cup is famed for.

Other notable ties

Other NPL sides have a chance to upset those in the National League North this weekend.

First, two newly-promoted sides in their respective divisions go head-to-head when Stockton Town host Marine.

Marine have a rich history as of late in the competition, famously hosting Tottenham Hotspur in the third round back in 2020/21. 

Stockton, meanwhile, are aiming to reach the third qualifying round for the first time in their history.

Chester, who sit fourth in the National League North, host Hebburn Town, who have made a great start to their first season in the NPL’s top division. The Hornets sit third, three points off league leaders Macclesfield.

And a battle in the north-east sees Spennymoor Town host Morpeth Town. The NPL Premier Division side are aiming to make it to the third qualifying round for the second straight season.

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