Kentish Football 
FA CUP THIRD ROUND DRAW: NO GLAMOUR TIE FOR HEROES DOVER ATHLETIC
Sunday 28th November 2010
DOVER ATHLETIC have been handed a disappointing trip to Huddersfield Town in the Third Round of The FA Cup, writes Stephen McCartney.
Former Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher picked out ball number 63 when the draw was screened live on ITV1 at Wembley Stadium this evening.
Martin Hayes’ heroes were hoping for a glamour tie away to Arsenal - or another Premier League giant - but there was a sense of disappointment when they were paired with a side that are presently in fifth place in League One.
The Whites started out in the Second Qualifying Round back in September with a comfortable 5-1 win at Kent League side Erith Town, before beating Cambridge City, Farnborough (at the second attempt), and then stunned League Two side Gillingham at Priestfield in the First Round.
Maidstone based striker, Adam Birchall, 25, took his FA Cup tally to eleven when his two goals sent League Two Aldershot Town crashing out of the competition in front of 4,123 fans at Crabble yesterday.
Rock gods Kasabian Serge Pizzorno and Gallagher embraced when their beloved Leicester City and Manchester City were drawn together, but the tie-of-the-round is the only all-Premier League clash between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford.
Dover Athletic, meanwhile, will travel to the 24,500 seat Galpharm Stadium, which was opened in August 1994 when Huddersfield lost 1-0 to Wycombe Wanderers. The venue stages Super League rugby with Huddersfield Giants also playing at the impressive stadium.
Artists such as Bryan Adams, The Beautiful South, Blue, Bon Jovi, The Eagles, Elton John and R.E.M have graced the stadium.
Away fans are generally located at one end of the ground in the South Stand, where up to 4,000 supporters can be accommodated. The facilities in this stand and the view of the playing action are both good.
The ground is around a twenty minute walk from Huddersfield train station.
The Terriers thrashed Macclesfield Town 6-0 at the Galpharm Stadium in the FA Cup Second Round yesterday and are a club who’s fans stay away from FA Cup ties, with 4,942 watching the game, compared to 12,773 that watched their last league game, against Milton Keynes Dons.
Dover Athletic manager, Martin Hayes, who spoke to www.kentishfootball.co.uk yesterday, following his side’s brilliant 2-0 home win over Aldershot Town, says this season’s run is his best yet.
He said: “With Arsenal I didn’t have great success at that level. We got to the quarter-finals twice but for that club that not’s great success.
“I had more joy in the League Cup and I’ve probably had more success as a manager at Dover in this run as I had with all the others so I’m just enjoying this at the moment.”
Dover Athletic have banked £69,500 in FA Prize money, and that doesn’t include the gate receipts from six Cup ties and the television rights from highlights from their games against Gillingham or Aldershot Town.
Chairman Jim Parmenter added: “The money will help our push towards promotion this year and ultimately towards the Football League is where we want to go and a Cup run like this really helps to finance that.
“It’s important for the long-term, for the future of the football club as well, not just the short-term.”
The FA Cup (Sponsored by E.ON) Third Round Draw:
Burnley v Port Vale
Coventry City v Crystal Palace
Bristol City v Sheffield Wednesday
Fulham v Peterborough United
Doncaster Rovers v Wolverhampton Wanderers
Brighton & Hove Albion or FC United of Manchester v Portsmouth
Huddersfield Town v Dover Athletic
Crawley Town or Swindon Town v Derby County
West Ham United v Barnsley
Reading v West Bromwich Albion
Arsenal v Leeds United
Sheffield United v Aston Villa
Leicester City v Manchester City
Bolton Wanderers v York City
Blackburn Rovers v Queen's Park Rangers
Swansea City v Colchester United
Wycombe Wanderers v Hereford United or Lincoln City
Stevenage v Newcastle United
Burton Albion v Middlesbrough
Millwall v Birmingham City
Southampton v Blackpool
Watford v Hartlepool United or Yeovil Town
Chelsea v Ipswich Town
Sunderland v Notts County or Bournemouth
Scunthorpe United v Everton
Manchester United v Liverpool
Hull City v Wigan Athletic
Stoke City v Cardiff City
Tottenham Hotspur v Charlton Athletic or Luton Town
Preston North End v Nottingham Forest
Norwich City v Droylsden or Leyton Orient
Torquay United v Carlisle United
Ties to be played 8 or 9 January 2011
Visit Dover Athletic’s website: www.doverathletic.com
Visit The Football Association’s website: www.thefa.com
Red Dragon I.T. Ltd