CHIPPENHAM Town are one game away from reaching the FA Cup first round proper following a 2-1 comeback win away at Metropolitan Police last weekend.

In the third qualifying-round tie, Gary Horgan’s men went behind midway through the first half following Josh Keeya’s deflected strike which found the bottom corner of Will Henry’s net.

But the Bluebirds’ response after the break was immediate. Spencer Hamilton powered a Jordan Young corner past Liam Beach to haul Chippenham back level.

The winning goal came nine minutes from time when Joe Parker’s cross bounced kindly for Caine Bradbury, and he calmly volleyed into the bottom corner.

Despite not arriving until 30 minutes before kick-off due to heavy traffic on route to London, Horgan felt his side deserved their spot in the final round of qualifying in the end.

He said: “We didn’t have the best of preparation, and that led to a bit of a slow start from us. But more so, credit to Met Police really because I thought they were fantastic in the first 15 minutes.

“It took us a while to get to grips with the game, but we managed to get a foot-hold. But then one of our mistakes led to them scoring.

“From then on, we were chasing the game, but I always felt we would go on to win the game if we stayed patient – and that was the case. It’s another one where the performance was good, and that probably justified the win.”

On Monday, Chippenham were drawn away to Southern League Premier South strugglers Hendon in the fourth qualifying round – set to take place on Saturday, October 15.

Despite Hendon having only won one game in the league so far, Horgan insisted his team cannot and will not take their upcoming opponents lightly if they want to reach the first round for the first time in three seasons.

Horgan said: “You’d probably consider it a favourable draw for us, or one that gives you a chance of progressing, because there were some really good and big teams from the National League left. But I’m pretty sure they’ll be looking at it the same way.

“As with any draw, we look for a home tie and then maybe a tie against a side from a lower division. We’ve got half of that, which we were pleased with, and that does give us a chance to progress.

“But we certainly won’t take them lightly, and with all of the games we’ve played in the Cup, I’d expect them to be a really good side.”