Steve Jupp, BA11's Club Historian, reflects on the Robins' FA Cup opener!
The Robins take a break from league action on Saturday as they dip their toes into the
welcoming waters of the FA Cup with an away First Qualifying Round tie at Banbury-based
Easington Sports.
Not surprisingly, it will be a first-ever meeting with the United Counties League Premier
Division South (Step Five) outfit and maybe, just maybe, the first step towards that holy grail
of a lucrative and historic place among the big boys in the First Round Proper.
Easington, known as ‘The Clan’, have been busy in the Cup already, winning 1-0 at
Portishead before impressively ousting Bristol Manor Farm 3-1 on their own Addison Road
patch so should not be taken lightly by Danny Greaves’ charges.
In the league, which is the equivalent level to the Western League Premier, they have begun
the campaign with two wins, a draw and two losses from five and their fixture list includes
meetings with the likes of St Neots and Histon, clubs with whom Frome regularly did battle
in their previous stint in the Southern Premier.
Since the early 70s, Easington were continuous members of the Hellenic League for some
five decades before a sideways post-Covid move to their current set-up, where they have
finished 14th, 11th and 13th in the past three seasons.
For the Scarlet Runners, this will be their 105th crack at the FA Cup (thanks to Ivan for that
one!), having first entered in 1906 and one of the perks of competing at Step Three is being
spared the perils of the early rounds which makes emulating the boys of 1954 (Leyton
Orient and all that) just a tad easier, especially with favourable draws.
You only have to go back seven years when they would have come out of the velvet bag
against sides from Step Four or below in all four qualifying rounds but, after seeing-off
Totton and Tavistock (both 2-1), fell disappointingly by the same score at the third hurdle to
Heybridge Swifts who went on (after beating Haringey Borough) to a memorable afternoon
in the First Round at Exeter City.
Every season for the past seventy years, Frome fans have dared to dream that this could be
their year again. If Clan Dodge can overcome Clan Easington on Saturday, they will be a
quarter of the way there.
Listen to the latest episode of the Dodge The Question podcast which has already caused quite a stir! You really won't want to miss this one after an "eventful" Bank Holiday weekend!
A debrief of the draw away at Chertsey and a bona fide explanation of all the 'antics' in the Taunton Town defeat before a look-ahead to Saturday's FA Cup tie with Easington Sports.
Strap yourselves in!
Secure your entry to September's games at Badgers Hill on the Fanbase app and website!
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