FA Cup 2026-27 4th Qualifying Rd Preview – FA Cup Factfile
The 4th Qualifying Round of the FA Cup sees the 24 National League clubs join the competition!
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Mind The Gap
Whilst those 24 clubs have waited to participate in this season’s competition there are five other clubs that have progressed all the way from the Extra Preliminary Round to be involved in this last Qualifying Round five wins later!
Two of those clubs that have already knocked out five other teams in this season’s competition are from Step Five of the pyramid with Combined Counties League Premier South club Tadley Calleva having drawn the plum tie of the round with a trip to 2025 FA Trophy winners Aldershot Town!
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Beginner’s Luck
The other Step Five club is South East Dons who remarkably are participating in the FA Cup for the very first time looking to be the first club for over 20 years to reach the 1st Round ‘Proper’ in their debut campaign! The Dons travel to Step Three club Sholing FC who are looking to reach the 1st Round for the first time themselves, so history will be made either way!
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Six out of Six?
The other three clubs that began their campaigns this season in the earliest Extra Preliminary Round all play at Step Four in the pyramid. Atherton Collieries of Northern Premier League Division One West have the hardest task with an away trip to National League high-flyers AFC Fylde!
Stafford Rangers from the same Step Four division also travel to National League opponents as they visit bottom of the table Gateshead FC. A similar victory to their 2-1 win over Gateshead in the FA Cup in 2004-05 season would take Stafford Rangers into 1st Round for first time in 20 years!
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Upset the Odds?
A two-step cupset win for Northern Premier League Division One Midlands club AFC Rushden & Diamonds over National League North opponents Morecambe FC would take the Northamptonshire club into the 1st Round for the first ever time, 16 years after their predecessor club last appeared in the round!
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Seeking Club History
Nine other clubs are looking to reach the 1st Round for the first ever time. Two of them face each other as Plymouth Parkway host Chertsey Town with the winner celebrating club history in the competition!
Salisbury FC and Berkhamsted FC are both in the 4th Qualifying Round for the first time and they respectively face Eastbourne Borough and Southend United hoping to continue their current record runs!
Cray Wanderers are another club looking to make FA Cup history and they travel to Bedford Town for whom a win would equal their best run from 25 years ago! Cray Wanderers would set an FA Cup competition record should they be victorious
Anstey Nomads travel to last season’s sensation Macclesfield FC, Brentwood Town visit National League side Eastleigh FC, and Dorking Wanderers go to Dover Athletic looking to be victorious in a 4th Qualifying Round tie for the first time at their fifth attempt.
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Burying the Past
The round kicks off on Saturday lunchtime with a live broadcast on BBC iPlayer between Bury FC and Harrogate Town. It’s eight years since Bury played a 1st Round tie and eight years since Harrogate Town didn’t!
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Reacquaintances
There are six ties in total that have happened in the competition before with the most common being Boston United versus Scunthorpe United. The Iron has won all three previous ties including the most recent, a 9-0 victory in 1953-54 season, Boston United’s second heaviest defeat in the competition!
Hartlepool United knocked out Marine FC both previous times they were drawn together in the FA Cup during the last century, whilst FC Halifax Town, Tamworth FC and Boreham Wood are all looking to avenge fairly recent Cup defeats to South Shields, Carlisle United and Woking FC respectively!
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Sweet Caroline
Finally, Wealdstone FC host Worthing FC in the only ‘Barker Tie’ of the round!
