Trafford 5-2 Cheadle Town

When you're at Level 10 of the footballing hierarchy the FA Cup is something that is handed out to the privileged few, based on league position and/or points-per-game the previous season. This renders it as something of a bonus; nothing more, nothing less.

Get a couple of wins under your belt. Make good the prize money. Get to the Qualifying Rounds. Pit your wits against non-league's higher and mightier. Visit new grounds. Meet new people. Embark on something of a mini adventure.

Which this season's FA Cup has been for us, for sure.

After some three seasons away from the competition it has felt good to be back. The win at Penistone in the Extra Preliminary Round was the perfect start to the season; the win at Northwich Victoria in the Preliminary Round - unexpected by those who regard themselves as non-league pundits - thoroughly deserved.

And so onto this 1st Qualifying Round tie where another team from the Northern Premier League Division One were allowed to try and have their wicked way with us.

And ultimately they did, but not before we made them sit up and notice.

The game was only a minute old when Sam Noar went after a lofted ball into the box and managed to make a goalbound connection with his head; the ball rolled wide with Sam getting a hefty clattering for his troubles.

Trafford then contrived to shoot over the bar from close range following a corner before we were slightly let off the hook when James Moore slipped on the greasy surface, allowing a Trafford forward a run at goal (grabbing a chunk of James' shirt in the process) with Ben Jupp thankfully making a block.

Mike Sherrington then just couldn't make a connection to a left-wing cross before Ben Jupp was at it again, making an excellent block just as Trafford's towering no10 - Mark Derbyshire - looked set to score.

With 28 minutes gone, Cheadle's FA Cup caper took another interesting turn.

Mike Sherrington's sheer persistence was key as he hectored Trafford's Jacobs for the ball before bearing down on goal and coolly slotting home from the edge of the area.

Mike Sherrington wheels away in delight after putting Cheadle 1-0 up

However, in the time that it took to say "just hold on for the next fifteen minutes or so and take the lead into half-time", Trafford were level; Ben Jupp did all he could to excellently keep out a header from a cross but could do absolutely nothing about Horrocks being on-hand to smash home the loose ball from close range.

Trafford had awoken, for nine minutes later they were ahead when Derbyshire was put through to slot past Jupp with them extending their lead further just before half-time with the same player firing home from the edge of the box.

Ben Jupp had to make another stop once more on 53 minutes before Sam Noar fired just over from inside the box.

On 64 minutes the tie was effectively over. Ben Jupp seemed to have the ball smothered and under control but in the blink of an eye it had squirmed out to the feet of Derbyshire who planted home from close-range to collect his hat-trick.

With twelve minutes to go Trafford got their fifth after Bryant's drive took a deflection off the backside of one of our back four; Ben Jupp doing well to still get some fingers to it to try and keep it out.

We were given the opportunity to make the scoreline a bit more respectable with seven minutes remaining. Last time we were handed a penalty at Shawe View in an FA Cup tie the ball ended up on its way to Stretford. Thankfully Luke Pearson didn't repeat that this time.

Sam Noar almost reduced arrears even further right at the death but he side-netted after controlling a Luke Pearson cross.

So there goes another adventure for another season...with another one starting this Saturday as we travel to Staveley Miners Welfare (again) for the start of our FA Vase campaign. But first, and always first, league matters this Wednesday evening as Sandbach United come to Park Road.

All the best to Trafford in the 2nd Qualifying Round and our heartfelt thanks for their superb hospitality.

TEAM: Jupp, McLaughlin, Pearson, German, Moore, Dunn, Hincks, Magida (Horan), Noar, M Sherrington, C Sherrington (Tosum). SUBS: Piggott (gk), Horan, Tosum, Flowers.

Northwich Victoria 2-4 Cheadle Town

If only we could replicate this kind of form in the league. And there endeth the moan.

What a wonderful afternoon. Despite conceding first (a bad habit we seem to have got ourselves into this season) we turned this tie around with some sumptuous play and deservedly booked ourselves a trip to Shawe View on Saturday 3rd September to take on Trafford in the First Qualifying Round.

It was Vics who bookended the scoring pattern. After 16 minutes they took the lead when Byrne's cross was met by the stooping head of Cockerline from close range with Byrne then netting a penalty deep into injury time.

In between that we scored four wonderful, well-worked goals, rendering Byrne's spot-kick as mere consolation.

Only five minutes after Vics had opened matters, we drew level thanks to Sam Noar; collecting a through ball from Liam Tongue on the left he powered forward and drilled home from the angle.

A quarter of an hour later it got better for us. With half of the Vics defence to deal with, there didn't look a lot on for Mike Sherrington when he received the ball on the edge of the box. With sheer determination, however, he managed to find a way through, shimmying at the last moment to work himself some space in the box and finish neatly.

The 2-1 lead we took into half-time was reward for the excellent shift that we had put in once we had got the equaliser, but with the sound of the Vics manager's words ringing in their ears (it wasn't hard to avoid hearing the dressing down they were getting in the boardroom next door), we had to be wary of a second half backlash.

Thankfully for us it never really materialised as it was us who started the second period on the front foot.

Just four minutes in Mike Sherrington almost caught the Vics keeper in no man's land but his effort was blocked with Luke Hincks then seeing a snap shot well held.

Just before the hour mark we extended our lead with a wonderful, flowing move.

Chris Sherrington, on his return to Cheadle Town, flicked a pass on the left to Luke Pearson who swung a tempting cross in first-time for Mike Sherrington to sweep home from the centre of the box.

Vics then enjoyed a better spell, putting us under pressure, mainly from corners and dangerous crosses that were either headed just wide or hastily cleared by our back four.

With all of the pressure soaked up and with the match entering stoppage time, we made sure of our place in the next round for sure.

Whereas Richard Whyatt had a shot from close range saved, Thabiso Magida was a bit more successful a minute later, slamming a cross home from close range to the sheer delight of everybody concerned. It was his first touch after coming on as substitute.

Our thanks to Northwich Victoria for their hospitality. We wish them all the best for the coming season.

The 3rd of September can wait. Between now and then there are two league matches to deal with and six points up for grabs....

TEAM: Jupp, McLaughlin, Pearson, German (Magida), Shaw, Dunn, Hincks, Tongue, Noar (Whyatt), M Sherrington (Tosum), C Sherrington. SUBS: Piggott (gk), Whyatt, Tosum, Russell, Magida, Horan.

Penistone Church 1-3 Cheadle Town

Did you know that this year's FA Cup competition was only 36 seconds old before it saw its first goal?

36 seconds. That's fairly impressive and is a proverbial medal to hang around the neck for the team that managed it.

The nation's cap is doffed to thee, Penistone Church FC. Capitalising on some nervy, nee calamitous defending by our back line, Church's Danny Joynes seized the ball on the right of the penalty area and lashed home past the despairing dive of Ben Jupp.

Not the best of starts, and matters didn't get any better as we were, simply put, a bag of nerves for the opening 20 minutes as passes went astray, the ball wouldn't stick and our pinpoint passing game and sharpness that had served us so well in pre-season had gone AWOL.

Our restlessness was still there for all to see on 21 minutes as Penistone should arguably have gone 2-0 up as we failed to deal with the ball in the area; various attempted - and failed - clearances finally, and thankfully, being lashed just over the bar.

But that moment proved to be something of a turning point. We started to find our passing range, enjoyed much more possession and started to pin Penistone into their own half.

And on 34 minutes it paid off. Matt German' s influence on the game was starting to show and it was he who, with a deft turn, set up Mike Sherrington on the right to lob the onrushing keeper and level matters.

Three minutes before half time saw another chance for us, with Luke Hincks drifting the ball in from the left for Sam Noar to head only for him to slightly lose his bearings and head well wide.

The half-time break didn't disrupt the momentum we had gathered.

Just eight minutes after the restart we took the lead for the first time in the tie when a Luke Hincks cross from the left was slammed home from close range by James Dunn.

James almost got his second just four minutes later, meeting a Liam Tongue cross from the right with his head to force the keeper to beat away at the near post.

The slenderness of a 2-1 lead was almost demonstrated on 70 minutes when James Dunn headed a cross from the right into danger with the resulting effort brushing the foot of the post.

But after that it was all Cheadle, with a hatful of chances coming in the final ten minutes of the game to put the game to bed.

On 80 minutes Matt German put Mike Sherrington clean through for him to screw a shot wide of the upright with the deciding goal coming just a minute later.

A moment of hesitancy by the Penistone defence was seized upon by Sam Noar as he rounded the keeper and then kept the coolest of heads to wait for assistance; Luke Hincks was the first on the scene and it was he who blasted home off the underside of the bar to give us a much-needed cushion.

Four minutes later Luke fed Sam Noar on the right with his square pass met by Liam Tongue and fingertipped past the post by the keeper.

One minute later and Matt German threaded in another delicious pass, this time for Liam Tongue who was, with the Penistone keeper haring down on him, forced to attempt the lob that ended up being just over the bar.

A win that takes us to Wincham Park in two weeks' time and an away tie in the Preliminary Round versus Northern Premier League 1 outfit Northwich Victoria. A first win in the FA Cup for us since August 2011 in that madcap 8-2 win at Chadderton; we had almost forgotten what wining in this competition had felt like.

Our thanks to Penistone Church FC for their hospitality which, as we have found out so many times now at clubs in the Northern Counties East League, was gracious and top-notch. We wish them all the best for the coming season.

Next up for us is the start of the league campaign as Litherland REMYCA visit Park Road on Wednesday evening.

TEAM: Jupp, McLaughlin, Magida, Russell, Moore, Dunn, Hincks, Tongue, Noar, M Sherrington, German. SUBS: Piggott (gk), Connolly, Whyatt, Tosum, Horan.