Seth Chambers looking to follow in 100-cap footsteps of Harry Kane as Needham Market enter FA Cup against St Albans City

In a week where England skipper Harry Kane revelled in his 100th cap, Seth Chambers is hoping to follow in his footsteps by marking his Needham Market century with firing his side through in the FA Cup.

The Marketmen begin their latest foray in the famous competition tomorrow with Vanrama National League South outfit St Albans City visiting the Ecological Stadium Bloomfields in the second qualifying round (3pm) with hopes of creating another magical run.

It was in the 2022/23 campaign that manager Kevin Horlock found himself thrust in front of the BBC cameras at the first round proper draw after his side made club history by seeing off Maidstone United at home in the fourth qualifying round.

A plum tie away to League One opposition in Burton Albion followed, with the mid-Suffolk side far from disgracing themselves as they ended up bowing out with a 2-0 defeat.

And they treated their supporters to another memorable journey last year when taking National League York City to a replay in the fourth qualifying round ahead of losing out on a repeat first-round appearance by a single goal to the Minstermen.

Homegrown teenage striker Chambers played his part in both of those runs and he has an added incentive, as if it were needed, to help his newly-promoted side kickstart another one in front of their home fans tomorrow.

“I think it's my 100th game for the club, which is obviously brilliant,” he said.

“Having been here at under-16s and through the academy, it's something I'm really happy to reach. Hopefully I can mark it with a goal and a win, which would be nice.”

The player who revealed he spent a week on trial in pre-season with League Two outift AFC Wimbledon, having been out to Ipswich Town, Barnsley and Aldershot Town earlier this year, knows it will be far from easy after being handed a tough tie against equivalent-level St Albans City.

“Yes, it's one of those things,” he said. “It's a cup game so the dynamic of it will be different.

“We have to leave everything out there and see what they're about.

“We'll have done our research and due diligence during the week and we'll give it everything we've got.

“The FA Cup is a big deal for us as a club, of course, and we need to back up the runs we've had in previous years.”

He added: “We obviously had the good one two years ago where we got to the first round and then last year we were just unfortunate against York.

“But I think we know on our day if we're up to it, we would back ourselves against anyone, so hopefully we can get there again.”

Needham look to break home duck

To get their names into the hat for Monday’s draw they will need to do something they have not managed to do in four home games so far this season, avoid defeat.

But in the wake of their frustrating 1-0 loss to Farsley Celtic in the Vanarama National League North on Saturday, Chambers is confident there is no mental block developing around playing at a place which had been an unbreached fortress during last season’s title-winning campaign.

He said: “The fans are brilliant, so that always gives us a boost

“I don't think we’re going into games thinking ‘oh, we're at home’.

“We just have to dust ourselves down, do what we know we can and hopefully that'll be good enough.”

Chambers is yet to get off the mark in front of goal this season, having topped Needham’s goalscoring charts last term with 20, and admits he is seeking a way to start hitting the form he knows he is capable of in their new league surrondings.

“I want to test myself and find the level that I'm capable of playing,” he said.

“I feel like I've not started as well as I feel like I can and I've got more to give.

“It's just trying to find your foot in the game at times, but there's plenty more to come, I like to think.”

Valentine returns to Bloomfields

Chambers and his team-mates were boosted off the back of Saturday’s smash-and-grab victory for Farsley, which saw Danny Greenfield’s 82nd-minute strike from outside the box come very much against the run of play, with the news that attacker Nico Valentine has re-signed on loan from Ipswich Town.

But the 19-year-old, who had kept in contact with assistant manager Tom Rothery following his first spell at Bloomfields being cut short by injury, will not be available to feature in tomorrow’s cup tie as he is working his way back from an issue picked up in pre-season.

However, Adam Mills, Dylan Williams and Kyle Hammond all made successful returns from injury off the bench against Farsley Celtic while Horlock said captain Kieran Morphew had been withdrawn as a ‘precaution’.