Altrincham host Notts County in FA Cup, with a proud history behind them
Altrincham, seventh in the National League, host League One side Notts County in the FA Cup first round on Saturday 7 November. Kick-off is at 5.30pm GMT at the J. Davidson Stadium, with coverage from 5pm.
The gap between the two clubs is wide. The National League is the fifth tier of English football, the level directly below the Football League. Notts County sit two divisions higher, in League One, the third tier. The FA Cup is the competition where that kind of gap can narrow, because non-league clubs enter at this stage and can be drawn against far bigger names.
Altrincham know that well. The BBC reports that they have beaten 17 Football League opponents in the FA Cup, more than any other club that has spent its whole existence outside the Football League. The club's golden era ran through the late 1970s and early 1980s. They reached the third round in four seasons in a row, from 1978 to 1982, and won the FA Trophy twice.
Graham Heathcote was at the centre of those years. He made more than 500 appearances for the club in the 1970s and 1980s, and he scored a penalty at Anfield against Liverpool in the 1981 third round. Altrincham also drew with First Division Everton at Goodison Park in 1975 and with Tottenham at White Hart Lane in 1979.
The best of their cup wins came in 1986. Altrincham knocked out First Division Birmingham City at St Andrews, and the BBC notes it was only the second of four non-league clubs to win away at top-flight opposition in the competition. A club that twice won the Alliance Premier League, the forerunner of today's National League, came closest to a Football League place in 1980. They missed out on election by a single vote under the ballot system, where member clubs vote on who joins.
Neil Gibson is the current manager. He joined last year when the club was fighting to avoid relegation, and the side is now comfortably placed in the division.
This is only the second FA Cup meeting between Altrincham and Notts County. The most recent league meeting came on 28 March 2023, when Notts County won 2-0 at the J. Davidson Stadium. Notts County's match report from that day says Macaulay Langstaff set a club record of 40 goals in a season during the win.
Altrincham reached this tie by winning an emphatic replay at FC United, which earned them this home draw. Adult tickets cost £23, according to the club. The tie is live on BBC Two, BBC iPlayer, TNT Sports and HBO Max.
Forty ties were drawn for the first round proper, and this one is among the most watched. For Altrincham, it is a chance to add another name to a cup record that has already outlasted most of the clubs they have played.
