Marine centre-back Declan Drysdale is determined to help the club write another memorable FA Cup chapter when they face Bradford City in the first round, six years after their famous tie against Tottenham Hotspur.
The Mariners, who knocked out Tottenham in the third round in 2020, are back in the first round proper for the second time since that run. They will travel to Valley Parade to take on Bradford, who were flying high in League One at the time of the draw last month.
Rossett Park reminders of 2020 success
Everywhere at Marine's Rossett Park, reminders of the success under Neil Young in 2020 remain. Second-round match-winner Niall Cummins has been immortalised with a mural on the front as you drive down College Road, while a memorial wall celebrates those who bought virtual tickets for the Spurs third-round tie, which had to be played behind closed doors.
Since then, Marine have enjoyed two promotions and are now within two promotions of the Football League. But the challenge Bradford pose is just as significant.
Drysdale's personal connection
Drysdale saw his Tranmere Rovers youth team-mates Bayleigh Passant and Josh Solomon-Davies embark on a giant-killing run of their own which ended at the hands of Jose Mourinho's Tottenham side in 2020. Now, he hopes they can forge their own storyline with the Crosby club, tasked alongside his defensive partners with thwarting the Bantams' strike force.
The 26-year-old said: "You knew how big it was but when you spoke to people, even now I'm in an office environment (for work), as soon as you say Marine, it's the first thing people talk about.
"It feels like I've spoken about that FA Cup run a lot. Now, we want our own little run, our own little bit of history.
"The fans deserve it, for what they have done, it's the icing on the cake. It's going to be a great day out, hopefully we give them something to cheer about."
From Football League to semi-professional
The centre-back is one of the experienced figures in the Marine dressing room, counting minutes in the Football League for Coventry City, Gillingham, Cambridge United, Newport County and Tranmere Rovers on his CV. He was forced to make a difficult adjustment from life as a professional footballer to semi-professional and working in an office environment.
His colleagues will travel to Valley Parade to offer their support in the hope of a giant-killing. For the 26-year-old, it will be his first visit to BD8 since he was sent off there as a Newport player.
He said: "It'll be a good day out and hopefully I don't play too bad because I think that'll be the running joke in the office then.
"This is why the FA Cup is so good, cup runs, there's something about them, the trips you have, we had some good party buses last year and hopefully we can do the same (on Saturday).
"Hopefully I'll last longer than the last time I played there, touch wood, it's a better day."
Embracing the underdog tag
Already this season, Marine have enjoyed a cup upset, beating higher-league opposition Hartlepool United in the last round. Eighty-two places separate Marine and Bradford when Bobby Grant's side visit Valley Parade.
The underdog tag isn't something that fazes the Mariners; instead, they embrace it, having beaten the likes of Tamworth and Woking under the former Morecambe striker last season in the FA Trophy, a historic run in its own right ending at the semi-final stage.
Drysdale said: "I think we always back ourselves, we thrive off being the underdogs. There's some powerhouses in our league, a club like Marine have prided themselves on being underdogs.
"It's a great occasion for all the lads, as much as we want to enjoy it, we are going there to write our own history. Hopefully we can write our own names in the competition's history."
