FA Cup: Village team Hartley Wintney set club record
Last updated on .From the section Football
Hartley Wintney are just one game away from the first round of the FA Cup, the best run in their 116-year history.
The club, who play in the Premier Division of the Combined Counties League, beat Clevedon Town on Monday to reach the fourth qualifying round.
And victory over either Grays Athletic or Daventry Town will raise the prospect of facing Football League opposition in the first round proper.
"It will be huge for the club," Hartley boss Ben Dillon told BBC Radio Solent.
"With the form we are in, who knows maybe we can pull off another shock."
The village is situated in the north east of Hampshire and has a population of only 4,980.
The club have already played eight games on their FA Cup journey to date with their latest victory, courtesy of a 96th minute goal, earning them £12,500.
Hartley reached the third qualifying round two years ago, when Dillon was playing in the team, and he enjoyed creating a little more history for the village side.
"It was such a buzz to see the ball go in," he said. "There was a pitch invasion and I haven't felt a buzz like that in football for a long time.
"I was lucky enough to play when we made history two years ago and to take the job on and beat that record is amazing
"It's fantastic to create history, and financially to us village sides it's superb and helps put us on the map. It's a lot of money to a village side."
