Aldershot Town Aims for FA Cup Upset Against Barnsley
Aldershot Town defender Ollie Harfield expressed confidence in the team’s ability to pull off an upset against League One club Barnsley in the FA Cup this weekend, drawing inspiration from a historic victory from three years ago.
The National League club aims to advance to the second round for only the second time in 11 seasons, having last achieved this milestone in the 2023-2024 season under manager Tommy Widdrington. During that memorable campaign, Aldershot famously defeated League Two’s Swindon Town with a stunning scoreline of 7-4 in the first round.
Reflecting on that match, Harfield, who was part of the squad, shared with BBC Radio Surrey: “It was a memorable FA Cup for us all. I was just lucky to be a part of it. It was unbelievable to be honest. Playing in it was crazy. Obviously no non-league team had ever scored seven past a league side. Great memories, and hopefully we can go and make some more on Saturday.” He recounted the surprise experienced in the dressing room, noting, “I think we were four or five nil up at half-time, and I looked up at the clock after 49 minutes and it was seven-nil.”
Following that run, the Shots also secured a victory against Stockport County, another League Two team, before facing a loss to West Bromwich Albion of the Championship in the third round.
Currently, the team is under the management of former player Scott Davies and started the season strong, winning five of their first ten league matches. However, they have faced challenges recently, securing only one win in their last six games and dropping to 14th in the table. They also needed two matches to overcome Combined Counties side Tadley Calleva in the FA Cup’s fourth qualifying round.
Despite these hurdles, Harfield remains optimistic. “We’re confident. We’ve been out of form and so have Barnsley to be honest. I know there’s a two-league gap but we scraped past Tadley in the last round, and hopefully we can use that as confidence and go and cause an upset,” he stated.
“The FA Cup is difficult, with the lower teams causing you problems, and we naturally drop a little bit. It was a big game for (Tadley), so it’s roles reversed this time.” He added that the preparation remains the same regardless of the opponent. “Scott gets us ready the best he can whoever we play, lower down or higher up, so we’ll be ready. We’re going to give it everything and hopefully have a good day.”
