Sammy Donnelly has great memories of the FA Cup – but he wants to create some fresh ones with the fans and players at Eastbourne Town.

The vastly experienced Donnelly will be in the dugout at The Saffrons beside manager Tony Reid when Eastbourne Town entertain Hartley Wintney in the second qualifying round of the famous knockout competition.

And Donnelly, who teamed up with Reid at Town following Kevin Laundon’s resignation, knows all about how the Cup can galvanise a club’s season after guiding Worthing to the first round proper in 1999.

That run ended in a 3-0 defeat against a Division Three Rotherham side 80 places above them in the football pyramid but not before the Rebels, who were in the old Ryman League division one, had already played eight games in the competition.

Today’s game will only be Town’s third in this season’s competition which has been a welcome distraction following a winless start in the league since a summer upheaval when Danny Bloor and Garry Wilson left the club to take over at Lewes.

Performances have been steadily improving as Reid and Donnelly put their stamp on the team but Donnelly sees tomorrow as an ideal opportunity to lift spirits with Town currently bottom of Ryman south.

Donnelly: “It is so important to the players because it takes away the tension of the league because of the position we are in but, in my opinion, the most important thing about this Cup run is its for our supporters and the people who run the club.

“The money is a big boost itself. It is £4,500 on this round and we have already won £5,000 so if we were to go through on Saturday then it would obviously boost the coffers of the club.

“But I see it as more than just money. It gives the players a different challenge but more importantly it is for the supporters as we need to give them something to cheer.”

After victories over Corinthian and then last season’s FA Vase finalists Tunbridge Wells, Town go into the game in the rare position as favourites with home advantage against a Hartley Wintney side from a league below.

But the Combined Counties League premier division side have made a strong start and Donnelly, as a veteran of many an upset, says they must not be under-estimated.

He said: “When you look at all the sides still in the FA Cup and you know an underdog is going to win tomorrow.

“They play in a division below us, have nothing to lose and everything to win, and that is the beauty of the Cup – anything can happen as I know from past experiences.”