Leatherhead chase a £100,000 bounty that could transform the club when they take on Torquay United in their first FA Cup first round clash since 1980 on Saturday.

The Fetcham Grove side, the lowest-ranked team still in the competition, beat AFC Sudbury last month to bag the plumb tie at struggling League Two outfit Torquay United.

More than 500 Tanners fans are expected to make the trip to the English Riviera at the weekend, hoping their side can pull off a shock and land a lucrative replay broadcast live on Sky TV.

The club would pocket a £75,000 windfall from Rupert Murdoch and a possible £10,000 from the BBC for a highlights slot on Match Of The Day, to go alongside £25,000 prize money snaffled so far.

Southern League Division One outfit Chasetown FC were able to redevelop their ground last season after taking Oldham Athletic to a replay at the same stage 12 months ago.

And boss Dave Harlow, who admits his players are mentally drained from recent events, hopes their run to the first round proper can leave a lasting legacy.

"To get a replay would be fantastic," he said.

"We are not going to win the competition so, at this stage, it would just be nice to make a few quid.

"If it happens, I am pretty sure we will use the money to develop the ground.

"Leatherhead teams from the past have only got memories of their achievements and nothing to show for it.

"It would be nice to have a new stand or section of terracing to mark our achievements."

It is the first time in 26 years the Tanners have reached this stage of the competition.

Their run 1980 run ended in a 5-0 defeat at the hands of Exeter City.

Torquay chairman Chris Roberts sparked a war of words last week by predicting his side would win by a "substantial margin".

But Harlow, who has tasted life in the first round of the FA Cup as a player with Kingstonian, believes his side are still in good shape to pull off an upset.

"We have all got our views and thoughts on the game and certain things should be kept to yourself," he said.

"To see such comments come from the chairman shows a lack of respect.

"To lose our unbeaten run before the game has taken a monkey off our back, so the pressure is totally off.

"I won't need to get my lads going for it.

"Torquay are expected to win handsomely and if they don't, anxiety could creep in and work in our favour. We have got nothing to lose."

Leatherhead will be without suspended midfielder Gavin Bolger and injured James Greenaway, but in-form defender Iain Hendry should recover from a bruised shin.

Paul Borg, whose twisted knee has given the number one jersey back to Chris Gibson, is expected to travel with the squad.

If no cup replay is needed, the Tanners visit Molesey in the league next Tuesday.

l Last Saturday's 3-0 reverse against Team Bath ended Leatherhead's FA Trophy hopes as well as an 18-match unbeaten run.

Scott Canham scored a hat-trick against a Leatherhead side reduced to long balls down the middle, a tactic which never looked like working against the aerial dominance of central defenders Adam Green and Matt Taylor.

Lee Doherty and Marc Charles-Smith did pull good saves out of keeper Darren Chitty, but the margin of defeat would have been later but for two fine saves late on from Chris Gibson.

Leatherhead: Gibson, Beer, Gray, Duncan, Doherty, Holmes, Sargent, Bolger (Thompson), Charles-Smith, Bennetts (Carpenter), Stevens.

l It is fair to suggest the FA Cup has been a distraction after that was followed by a 4-0 home reverse by Dulwich Hamlet on Tuesday.

Doherty's early diving header went just over, but the Tanners struggled to cope with the pace of Dulwich strikers Phil Williams and and Chris Dickson.

After Williams had outpaced the Tanners defence for the first , Charles-Smith and Dave Stevens were unlucky not to equalise.

Dickson made it 2-0 before the break and completed an impressive hat-trick in the second half to send Dulwich top of the league.

Leatherhead: Gibson, Beer, Gray, Duncan, Doherty (Sears), Holmes, Sargent, Bolger, Charles-Smith, Bennetts (Carpenter), Stevens.