AFC Hackleton gearing up for big FA Sunday Cup semi-final battle at Sixfields

AFC Hackleton will be carrying the flag for their village, for Northampton and for the county when they take on Trooper FC in the FA Sunday Cup semi-final at Sixfields on Sunday (ko 2pm).

The Nene Sunday League side have reached the last four of the national KO competition, and are aiming to become the first town team to claim glory since Duke of York won it in 2003.

The FA Sunday Cup has been in existence since 1964, and aside from Duke the only other town side to lift the silverware were Nexday in 1988.

So if Hackleton can get over the next two hurdles they will join some exclusive company, and player-manager Dan Porter can’t wait to see if his players can do it.

Trooper will be stiff opposition.

They beat holders St Joseph’s from Luton in round three, and the Tamworth side are also currently riding high in the Oakbourne & Coronation Sunday League, which they won last season.

But Hackleton are themselves enjoying a brilliant campaign.

They sit top of the NSL Premier with a 100 per cent record, and can go into Sunday’s Sixfields showdown with confidence.

Hackleton have progressed through five rounds to get to this stage.

In the first round they enjoyed a 6-1 win at Club Lewsey, and then in round two were too good for Community Football Academy as they secured a 4-1 home win.

The third round saw Hackleton ease to a 3-0 win at Hazelwell before going to West End and seeing off their hosts 5-1.

The quarter-final saw the villagers overcome their toughest test as they travelled to Barking FC to take on 2022 winners Baiteze, and after a 1-1 draw sealed their progress with a dramatic penalty shootout victory.

After that, the excitement levels for Sunday’s semi-final were already high, but they have reached fever pitch since the venue was revealed to be the home of the Cobblers, and for Porter it has been hectic.

"It has been crazy,” said the AFC player-boss.

“We have sold more than 550 tickets, just for the Hackleton end, and now more have gone on sale... I think the village is going to be very quiet!

"The game being at Sixfields is fantastic and is a right touch for us, being so local, and we are really looking forward to it.”

Porter has been involved with AFC Hackleton since the club was formed in 2010 for a ‘group of mates who lived in the village’, and has been in charge for the past two campaigns.

AFC won the treble last season, and this term entered the FA Sunday Cup for the first time, joining a record 123 other clubs from all around the country.

The villagers have taken the step up in standard like ducks to water, and are now a possible 180 minutes away from winning the whole thing!

"Nobody thought we would get past the first round, and now we are here in the semi-final,” said Porter. “It is ridiculous really and I am really proud of the lads to have got so far.”

Key men for Hackleton are the likes of Jarvis Wilson, Will Glennon and Jamie Hall, who have scored a remarkable 56 goals between them so far this season.

Porter himself is no slouch when it comes to hitting the target, and there are others who regularly catch the eye as well, such as Ed Panter and John Dean.

Most of the team play to a good standard in Saturday football, and Porter has full belief in his team.

But he is expecting a testing afternoon, and said: “We like being the underdogs, and we are underdogs in this round as Trooper have some class players.

"They have a lot of their games on YouTube, the same as the last team we played.

"A lot of their players play at a decent standard, so we can pick up little bits and I have managed to watch as much as I possibly can.

"So we know it is going to be tough, but we just have to give it our all, and we are certainly going to be well backed as well.

"Football can be cruel sometimes, and we are always careful and cautious and know we are guaranteed nothing.

"But if we play to half our ability then we will be close at the end.”

​Like Hackleton, Trooper have also sold plenty of tickets for the match, with the bottom tier of the west stand set to be pretty well occupied on Sunday afternoon.

A crowd around 1,000 could well be in attendance, which will be a new experience for many of the young Hackleton players.

But Porter is backing them to rise to the occasion.

"It is going to be daunting for some of the lads, but hopefully the experienced lads we have can help the younger ones through,” said the player-boss.

"We do have experience, but the majority of the team are under 25 so they are young.

"So what a day out for them, and what an experience, but hopefully being well backed from the stands can help them thrive in the moment."

Sunday’s match is all ticket, and they are still available in the Hackleton section, priced £5 each, at https://ntfcdirect.co.uk/NorthamptonTown/ASP/bookTickets.asp?dept=Spectators

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