National League North side Chorley F.C host Covid-19 struck Derby County in third round FA Cup tie

National League North side Chorley F.C host Covid-19 struck Championship side Derby County in the FA Cup third round on Saturday.

Chorley F.C reached the third round of the FA Cup after beating high flying League One opposition in Peterborough United to set up what looks to be another scintillating match against Wayne Rooney’s Derby County, who have recently been struck with a number of positive Covid-19 tests.

These two sides have only met each other three times in their histories. Chorley currently find themselves in 10th position in the National League North. Should they beat Derby County and reach the fourth round they would be looking to draw a Premier League side in the next round of the competition.

In comparison, Derby are sat in 22nd in the Championship table. The club will be looking to prioritise safety in the league over a run in the FA Cup. However, Derby has won each of their last five FA Cup matches against sides from a lower division since losing 2-1 to non-league Crawley Town in the third round in 2010-11.

Chorley F.C.

Despite being in the National League and being rather unknown to many supporters, Chorley is a club on everyone’s lists as they look forward to round three of the FA Cup. Chorley have been slowly but surely gaining a bit of momentum and this cup tie has come at the right time for the club, with confidence brewing throughout the squad an upset could be on the cards. This would be a huge boost financially for the club that is currently in the sixth tier of English football.

Credit: PA

Since booking their spot in the third round of the FA Cup, Chorley’s form has been rather inconsistent as they proceeded to beat the likes of Fylde 3-1 at home, however, the following week suffered a 4-0 thrashing in the return fixture. If the club were to progress in the competition, it would mean a lot to the fans during these challenging times around the world.

Derby County

Derby County’s entire first-team squad is expected to miss the game due to an outbreak of COVID-19 which saw their training ground also close at the start of the week, meaning that they will field a team from both the under-23’s and under-18’s. It will be a hard task for The Rams to find themselves in the hat for round four given the lack of experience and quality that will lineup on the pitch come Saturday.

Derby County have issued an update ahead of Saturday's @EmiratesFACup tie at @chorleyfc.

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— Derby County (@dcfcofficial) January 6, 2021

Even with a fully fit squad, Wayne Rooney’s side is near the foot of the Championship table as they have only claimed 19 points this season from 22 games. Their form has however picked up as of late as they beat Swansea and fellow strugglers Birmingham as well as picking up well-respected points against both high flying Brentford and Stoke City.

Conclusion

Given the way the two teams look to lineup, even though Derby will still be regarded as favourites for the tie, Chorley should not be underestimated as they have proved their worth in previous rounds. They will be keen to keep the honeymoon dream alive in the FA Cup and will be desperately trying everything in their power to be able to win the game. I believe that given the nature of the squad that will travel to Chorley as well as the magic of the FA Cup, that Chorley will be able to win the tie and carry on their dream in the competition.

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