League One outfit Forest Green Rovers will be bidding to progress to the second round of the FA Cup when they make the trip to South Shields on Saturday afternoon.
South Shields have had to win four matches in this season's competition to progress to the first round, overcoming Workington, Shildon AFC, Marske United and Scunthorpe United.
Match preview
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South Shields play their league football in the Northern Premier League, which is the seventh tier of English football, and as mentioned, they have had to win four games to progress to the first round.
The Mariners beat Workington 3-2 and Shildon AFC 5-0 in September, before recording a 5-2 victory over Marske United at the start of October.
The club then managed to record a famous 1-0 win over Scunthorpe United on October 15 to progress to the first round, and they will now host League One opposition in the shape of Forest Green.
South Shields, who currently sit fifth in their domestic table, boasting 25 points from 12 matches, are managed by former Premier League forward Kevin Phillips, who recently told Sky Sports News that his side 'fancy their chances' of progressing with the support of their home crowd.
"We fancy our chances against anybody at our place. It's an intimidating place to come, it's very noisy, the crowd is right on top of you. What we can't afford to do is let them settle into the game and play their football. They are, technically, a very, very good side," said the 49-year-old.
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Forest Green, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a 2-0 defeat to Barnsley in League One last weekend, with the result leaving them down in 23rd spot in the table.
The Green, who won League Two last season to secure promotion to League One for the first time in their history, have only picked up 13 points from their 17 league games this term.
Ian Burchnall's side recorded a 4-1 victory over Exeter City in the EFL Trophy on October 18, but they are winless in their last three, losing to Portsmouth and Barnsley, in addition to drawing with Fleetwood Town.
Rovers will not view the FA Cup as a priority this season, with remaining in the third tier more important, but they will be determined to avoid what would be a shock defeat this weekend.
Forest Green have not actually won an FA Cup fixture since beating Billericay Town 4-0 in November 2019, losing their last three in the competition against Carlisle United, Lincoln City and St Albans City.
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Team News
South Shields head coach Phillips is likely to select the same side that took to the field for the first whistle against Scunthorpe in the competition last time out.
Dylan Mottley-Henry scored the winner against Scunthorpe and is again expected to feature in attack, while Martin Smith and Mackenzie Heaney should also keep their spots in attack.
Phillips will need to assess the fitness of his players ahead of the contest, but there are expected to be changes from the side that started against Warrington Town in the FA Trophy last time out.
Forest Green, meanwhile, have no major injury concerns ahead of Saturday's contest.
Head coach Burchnall is expected to select a strong side, with potentially only a few changes from the XI that took to the field against Barnsley in the league last weekend.
Kyle McAllister could come in for Harvey Bunker, while Armani Little is also in line for a starting role, with the 25-year-old potentially replacing Myles Peart-Harris.
South Shields possible starting lineup:
Boney; Adams, Morse, Broadbent, Woods; Liddle, Briggs, Newton, Mottley-Henry; Smith, Heaney
Forest Green Rovers possible starting lineup:
Thomas; Bernard, Cargill, Marques; O'Keeffe, McAllister, Hendry, Boyes; March, Little, Wickham
We say: South Shields 0-2 Forest Green Rovers
South Shields were excellent against Scunthorpe in the last round of the competition, but we are finding it difficult to back the home side here. Forest Green will have superior quality all over the field, and we are expecting the League One side to progress to the next round.
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Top tip
Matt Law
