Gunnersround could be shot at by Moors
NON-LEAGUE Solihull Moors could face 13-times FA Cup winners Arsenal in the third round – and chairman Darryl Eales said: “The magic is in the draw.”
Just 24 hours after their stormy north London derby win against Tottenham, the Gunners will travel to the winners of National League long shots Moors, managed by former England goalkeeper Tim Flowers, and Blackpool’s secondround replay next week.
Unai Emery’s men could find themselves swapping the teeming intensity of Sunday’s
4-2 win at the Emirates for 3,050-capacity Damson Park next door to the Jaguar Land Rover plant on Birmingham’s fringes.
And Moors chairman Eales (above) said: “There are about 30 of us who watched the draw in our local pub and you would think we had won the cup.
“Just to hear
Solihull Moors come out of the hat with Arsenal, in the same sentence, is unreal – it’s one of my proudest moments in football.
“Of course we want to beat Blackpool and make it happen, but that moment will live in my memory forever. It’s dreamland.
“When people talk about the magic of the cup, the draw is the best part. What some folk don’t understand is that it attracts people with no previous interest in the game to football.
“I’ve already had locals asking if they’ll be all right for tickets – but let’s show Blackpool due respect and see if we can make this fairytale happen.”
Last night’s draw from Stamford
Bridge was littered with booby-traps for the big guns.
There are four potential ties between non-league minnows and Premier League quarry, with Tottenham handed a trip to either Southport or Tranmere, while Leicester will travel either to National League high-flyers Wrexham or Newport County.
So far, the only definite match-up is Woking’s home date with Watford at the Kingfield stadium.
The Cardinals, flying high in National League South, are 107 rungs beneath Javi Gracia’s side in English football. But Woking turned over League Two Swindon at the weekend and manager Alan Dowson said: “It’s a fantastic opportunity for us to measure up against Premier League quality.” Bournemouth v Brighton Chelsea v Nottm Forest Fulham v Oldham Man Utd v Reading Norwich v Portsmouth Sheff Wed v Luton Woking v Watford