Matt Jansen's Chorley not just making up the numbers in FA Cup first round tie with Fleetwood

Despite two key players on loan from Fleetwood being ineligible, the Lancashire club still harbour hopes of causing an upset

Matt Jansen has overseen steady, sustainable progress at Victory Park (Chorley FC)

“I was sat watching the draw live on TV thinking don't get Fleetwood,” says Nick Haughton. “As soon as we came out, I was like: 'Please, please don't'.” Haughton is a Chorley player, but one on loan from League One’s Fleetwood Town, and the last thing he wanted was to see the two paired together in the first round of the FA Cup. Inevitably, they were. “I couldn't quite believe it,” he says. “I was in shock.”

The day after the draw, Chorley still had to negotiate their way through a Tuesday night qualifying round replay more than 150 miles east, away to fellow National League North outfit Boston United. Haughton knew that lose and Chorley would be out, win and he would ineligible to face Fleetwood, and whatever happened, he would not play in the next round. It only made his match-winning hat-trick all the more spectacular.

Haughton's second that night – a powerful, driven finish after he had cut inside and cruised past two defenders - showed why he has taken so well to life in the sixth tier, with eight goals in 12 appearances so far. It was his third though, scored with nine minutes remaining in extra time to put his side 4-3 up, that proved decisive. The 23-year-old describes the team's performance that night as “incredible” rather than complimenting himself on his own, but it is fair to say that without him, Chorley would not have secured a place in the FA Cup proper for the first time in 27 years.

Now, they must take on try to reach the second while he watches from the stands. “Of course I'm gutted,” he says, “but I knew before the game against Boston I wasn't able to play. I was just trying to do my best to help the team get as far we can, especially for a club like Chorley that needs some money. It was nice to help them get a little bit of backing from that.”

Haughton is not the only one who will miss out. First-choice goalkeeper Matt Urwin is also a Fleetwood loanee and was just as important in edging his new club into the next round. Matt Jansen, Chorley’s manager and once of Blackburn Rovers, can’t help but be disappointed for the pair. “They've both been brilliant since they joined. You couldn't have written it really, who we were going to draw. Obviously the rule is they can't play against their parent club so it’s frustrating, but we have a good squad of players.”

Long-serving captain Andy Teague echoes his manager’s sentiments. “Some players could have sulked at the draw, maybe not wanted to try as much for the team, but they never did that,” he says. “Nick came out, scored a hat-trick and credit to Matt as well, he pulled off world class saves in the game at Boston. They've got us here, hopefully we can try and get something for them.”

The loss of two key players for Monday’s home tie with Fleetwood led the club to put out a social media appeal. “Wanted. Keeper and midfielder,” it read, with tongue half in cheek. “Must be able to play against @ftfc in the #EmiratesFAcup #flymagpiesfly”.

In the end, they did not have trawl through the 853 replies to find their replacements. Ian Black, the former Scotland and Rangers midfielder, has signed non-contract terms until the end of the season and young Cardiff City goalkeeper Oliver Byrne will take Urwin’s place on Monday. Shay Given, a golfing friend of Jansen’s, was approached but turned down the chance to take to a football pitch for the first time since September 2016.

In the same situation, other clubs at Chorley’s level might have spent money on a short-term need and gambled, hoping progression into the second round might bring greater returns. Fleetwood themselves rose from Chorley’s level to the third tier through significant financial backing, but Chorley’s more modest rise has been founded on steady, sustainable management by Jansen and his predecessor at Victory Park, former Blackburn team-mate Garry Flitcroft.

“We were at Leigh Genesis before that and the club went belly up financially, then we were asked by Chorley to come in and have a meeting,” Jansen says. “We saw the potential and we've grown, two promotions, narrowly missing out twice in the playoffs in this division, and now we've got a fantastic cup tie.”

Teague has been there virtually every step of the way, joining mid-way through Flitcroft’s first season back in the Northern Premier League Division One North days, and despite the relative lack of resources, he only sees the club moving forward.

Nick Haughton in action for parent club Fleetwood Town (Getty)

“There is some big teams who pay big bucks but look at Chorley, we have players here who have been together for four or five years,” he says. “It's all about the team in the end and we've got enough players who'll give everything to the cause of Chorley, and then the players that come in always seem to add to what we have. It's going to continue, I can't see it changing to be honest.”

Retaining Jansen’s services will be key. He is a young, well-connected manager and one that has a point to prove in the game. A near-fatal motorcycle accident in 2002 cut him down in the prime of his playing career and ultimately led to an early retirement. Management at Chorley, though, has given him a ‘second life’ in a sport he almost fell out of love with.

“It's exactly that. I couldn't get back to the highs and I left football for a bit, but I got a phone call from Garry asking if I wanted to join him. I thought 'OK, at least I'll have a focus in life'. I enjoyed it and started my qualifications, I've got my A License now and then I was thrust into the hot seat three seasons ago. It was a sharp learning curve but I feel like I'm growing and growing as a manager. Hopefully that can continue.”