HANWORTH Villa can rewrite the history books again if they win at AFC Totton in tomorrow's FA Cup fourth qualifying round tie.
The Villains have already become the first ever Combined Counties League side to reach this stage of the competition, having knocked out Slough Town in the last round.
But to take the fairytale into dreamland, boss Bobby Dawson has called on Villa's travelling army of fans to cheer them through their toughest test yet, against the Southern Premier leaders.
He said: "We’ve made history for the Combined Counties League, which is a great honour for the club and obviously reflects well on the league too.
“Getting to where we are has been a fairy tale, but if we get through to the first round proper it will be a phenomenal achievement and do wonders for the team and this area.
“We are talking about drawing teams like Sheffield Wednesday and Charlton. Going away from home and getting a result is a big ask, but we will do the best we can, and I'll be happy enough with that.
“We had 650 people turn up last Tuesday to see us go through and we’ve got the whole area buzzing. There’s talk of 200 people going down on coaches, and it will really lift the boys."
One of the teams Villa knocked out in the earlier rounds was neighbours Bedfont Sports, and lightning struck twice on Saturday when they knocked them out of the FA Vase too.
They broke the deadlock at Rectory Meadow when Shaun Preddie nodded the ball home on 26 minutes, and Levi King squeezed the ball home from a wide position to double his side’s advantage on 55 minutes.
Ten minutes later, Bedfont were back in the game when their Stuart Bamford rose to head home a corner. But with 10 minutes left, Adam Baigent converted from the penalty spot to seal victory.
Villa were then back in league action on Tuesday night, when a Steve Loveridge (pictured) brace and a Matt Baines strike earned a 3-1 win over Raynes Park Vale, moving them up to ninth in the Combined Counties Premier with up to four games in hand over the teams above them. They host Ash United on Tuesday night.
Bedfont Sports, meanwhile, also have the biggest game of their season tomorrow when they host Combined Counties Division One title rivals Guernsey. Bedfont are currently eight points behind the Channel Islanders, but have three games in hand.
