AFC Portchester are aiming to reach the First Qualifying Round stage of the Emirates FA Cup for the first time in eight years this weekend.

A 3-1 victory at Amesbury Town in 2017 set up a home tie against Dorchester in the First Qualifying Round stage – where the Royals produced a famous 1-0 win against the Dorset club.

And while they would love one of their strikers to net a hat-trick in the Preliminary Round tie at Moneyfields on Saturday (kick off 3pm), Gav Spurway’s men would definitely not love to complete an unwanted hat-trick of cup defeats to the Portsmouth-based side.

On the two previous occasions the two sides have met in the national cup competitions the Royals have fallen to a defeat.

Both losses came in the FA Vase – a 2-1 defeat in the Second Qualifying Round in 2010 and a 2-0 setback in the same round of the competition in 2021.

Saturday’s game marks the third meeting with PO Postcode opposition in seven days for the Royals after the matches with Bognor Regis Town last Saturday and Fareham Town on Tuesday evening.

And with this familiarity comes extra difficulty, as manager Gav Spurway explained during his post-match interview following the 3-2 victory at Fareham Town.

He said: “These kind of games are always difficult as everyone knows each other – so like the Fareham game, it (Moneyfields) will be another tough game.

“We will have to prepare properly on Thursday at training to be ready for Saturday.”