Non-league AFC Sudbury prepare for biggest FA Cup match in their history

  • Watch Donovan Blake's report for ITV News Anglia

Non-league AFC Sudbury are preparing for the biggest FA Cup match in their history.

The Suffolk part-timers are staging the opening tie of the FA Cup 1st Round in front of a live TV audience tonight.

Sudbury play in the Isthmian League North, the eighth tier of English football, while their opposition Colchester are in League Two.

Non-league AFC Sudbury are preparing to take on Colchester in the 1st round of the FA Cup. Credit: ITV News Anglia

Behind the scenes AFC Sudbury has enlisted the help of Maldon and Tiptree who've enjoyed recent high profile cup exposure.

Andrew Long, Chairman of AFC Sudbury, said: "You can't just go along to your local bookshop and buy volume that says this is how you stage a first round proper game against a league club shown live on national television, it doesn't exist.

"So any bit of help that we've been given has been so much appreciated by everybody here."

Non-league AFC Sudbury will take on Colchester United who are in League Two. Credit: ITV News Anglia

To have their closest league club as First Round opponents is a dream for the Suffolk part-timers, and particularly joint-manager Angelo Harrop.

He said: "I was at the club from 8 years of age to 19, all the way through the youth and into the seniors.

"It was a big part of our family, our lives, so to have all my family here on Friday and be joint manager is going to be a very proud moment."

This is only AFC Sudbury's second appearance at this stage of the FA Cup, and they're determined to make the most of it.