Now it’s Jose Marine-ho!
EIgHTH-TIER outfit Marine made Fa Cup history last night when they were pitted against Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham in a memorable third- round draw that threw up several fairytale ties.
The Merseyside club, who are ninth in the northern Premier league division One north West, will host the Premier league leaders in early January. It is the biggest gap ever between opponents in the third round.
Elsewhere, third-round debutants Chorley — who play in the sixth tier — face Wayne Rooney’s derby in their first visit to this stage, and national league side stockport County take on West Ham.
The other non-league side in the competition, Boreham Wood, will host Millwall.
There are also several all-Premier league ties to look forward to. Holders arsenal take on newcastle, Wolves face Crystal Palace, and liverpool visit aston Villa, the side who humiliated them 7-2 earlier this season. Manchester United face Championship promotionchasers Watford.
The ties will be played over the weekend of January 8-11.
But all eyes will be on Marine, only the second eighth-tier side to reach the third round. ‘It’s unbelievable,’ manager neil Young said. ‘To get seven games under our belt to get here, that’s our reward. The players, the committee and the fans, it’s unbelievable for us.’
The draw was greeted by cheers from houses around Marine’s Rossett Park stadium, where the club will hope to welcome supporters for the visit of Tottenham — Covid restrictions permitting.
On the prospect of battling Mourinho (below), Young said: ‘We’ll just plan as best we can, usually with Jose he puts pretty strong teams out in every competition. It’s a great tie for us, it doesn’t get much more difficult but it’s a remarkable achievement to get here.’
national league north side Chorley have already beaten Wigan and Peterborough and are eyeing another upset against Rooney’s derby, who are bottom of the Championship.
‘We’ve got a chance,’ insisted manager Jamie Vermiglio. ‘a tie against Wayne Rooney, that’s something to look forward to.
‘getting the fans in will just be amazing. like all non-league clubs, we’ve struggled this year. This Cup run really is keeping us afloat.’
Other potential giant- killings include Frank lampard’s Chelsea welcoming league Two Morecambe, who are in the third round for the first time in 18 years, and Marcelo Bielsa taking his leeds side to fourth- tier Crawley Town. Brighton have a trip to league Two leaders newport, who in recent years have beaten leicester and taken Tottenham to a replay.