Bradford Park Avenue make the long journey down south tomorrow to give themselves the best possible preparation for Saturday's FA Cup first-round proper tie at AFC Totton.

Totton are between Oxford and Cambridge in the Evo-Stik Southern Premier League.

Geographically it is in deepest Hampshire and the Bradford club will be spending tomorrow evening in the comfort of a plush hotel on the outskirts of Southampton.

Before the team bus headed towards the south coast, Bradford boss John Deacey said: “We have had two very good training sessions this week and the players are all very keen to be involved.

"As a club I think we have prepared as well as we can, so it is a case of going down there with our fingers crossed hoping to get a positive result.”

Avenue will be in high spirits, and not just because of the overnight trip.

They go into the cup tie on the back of three victories. After beating Kidsgrove Athletic away in the last round, Deacey’s men picked up six points from wins against Chester and Stocksbridge in the Evo-Stik Northern Premier League.

That means Avenue suspend their league campaign currently in fifth, while Totton boast second place in the southern equivalent - Oxford City are top while Cambridge City are in third.

However, Saturday's opponents have comparable records thus far. Totton have played 14 league games, have 28 points and have lost twice at home. Avenue have played 15, amassed 31 points and have only lost twice away.

Avenue’s chief executive officer Bob Blackburn said: “We obviously don’t know much about Totton, and I suppose the same could be said of them about us.

"What we do know is that they have just moved into a new ground this season and the playing surface is lovely by all accounts.

“I think that will help us as we play good football and prefer decent pitches. We have played well at some nice grounds this season and we have done well at home against teams that like to play proper football.

“We (the board) are very pleased with John and Mark (assistant Hume), and that is why we got them on contracts.

"The season is going well and if we win our games in hand we would be top or thereabouts, so you can’t complain.

“To say we have done well in the FA Cup just shows John and Mark have got the squad, and I hope we are still fighting on two fronts after the weekend.”