National League outfit Chesterfield will play host to League Two high-flyers Northampton Town in an FA Cup first-round tie on Saturday.

The visitors currently occupy third spot in England's fourth tier after consecutive draws, while their opponents hold the same position in the division below and will aim to pull off something of an upset.

Match preview

Chesterfield come into Saturday's FA Cup first-round fixture hoping for another positive run in the domestic competition after reaching the third round last time around, beating Southend United and Salford City before earning a trip to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea and losing 5-1.

They have already been in action in this year's competition too, entering in at the final round of qualifying with a trip to Anstey Nomads, and Paul Cook's side progressed as Armando Dobra, Akwasi Asante and Kabongo Tshimanga got on the scoresheet in a 3-0 victory.

On their return to league action after that win, the Spireites have built a fine run of form in their bid to return to England's fourth tier this term, going four league games unbeaten and scoring three victories, having firstly beaten Bromley before drawing 1-1 away at York City.

Following a 2-0 triumph at home to Boreham Wood, Cook's men would continue building momentum with a 2-1 triumph over Gateshead on Tuesday, as Joe Quigley drew them level in the first half and Liam Mandeville netted what turned out to be the deciding goal soon after half time, strengthening the Derbyshire outfit's position in the top three as a result.

Now briefly turning their focus away from their league pursuits, Chesterfield will aim to recreate last year's heroics and dump Football League opposition out of the FA Cup in their attempt to reach the later stages of the competition.

However, they meet a Northampton Town side who have also enjoyed a strong start to their league campaign, with the visitors sat third in League Two after 17 games.

In that time, the Cobblers have managed to earn 32 points and nine victories, although only one of those wins and six points have come from the last six outings, as they have somewhat faltered after a five-game winning run, firstly losing two games on the bounce before playing out a creditable draw away at fellow promotion-chasers Leyton Orient.

Jon Brady's side did then return to winning ways in dramatic fashion away at Stevenage, as Shaun McWilliams sealed a 3-2 victory with an 87th-minute goal soon after Alex Gilbey drew their hosts level, and they now come into Saturday's trip on the back of consecutive draws, most recently sharing the points at home to Newport County.

Their visitors went ahead inside two minutes through Omar Bogle and led throughout the contest, looking set to take all three points back to Wales, only for Sam Hoskins to pop up with a 93rd-minute winner and force a share of the spoils at Sixfields, keeping his side ahead of fourth-placed Sutton United and in the automatic promotion spots as a result.

Having failed to get past the first round in each of the last two seasons after a memorable trip to the fourth round in the 2019-20 season, the Cobblers will look to improve their cup fortunes this time around and get the ball rolling with a victory in Derbyshire.