Harrogate Town handed tough FA Cup first round draw against Wrexham AFC
Harrogate Town have been handed a difficult assignment in the first round of the FA Cup.
Monday night’s draw pitted the League Two Sulphurites against League One high-flyers Wrexham, though Simon Weaver’s men will at least have home advantage.
The Welsh side, who are owned by big-spending Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, currently sit second in the third tier, just behind Birmingham City.
With teams from Championship level and above not entering the competition until further down the line, Town could hardly have been pulled out alongside tougher opposition.
The tie, which is scheduled to take place at Wetherby Road over the weekend of November 2, is a repeat of 2021/22’s first round clash.
Still a National League outfit at that point, Wrexham took a 38th-minute lead in that game through Jordan Ponticelli, but were sunk by late strikes from Simon Power and Danilo Orsi.
The clubs also met in the FA Cup in 2018/19 in an all-National League affair. Following a 0-0 draw in North Yorkshire, Wrexham triumphed 2-0 at the Racecourse Ground in the fourth qualifying round replay.
The Red Dragons’ most recent visit to the Exercise Stadium came last season and ended in a 2-2 draw.
Dean Cornelius and Anthony O’Connor were the men on target in that League Two fixture, as Town fought back from two down.
Last term, Harrogate thrashed non-league Marine 5-1 to reach the FA Cup’s second round, where they were taken apart by League One Bolton Wanderers.
The Sulphurites have only ever progressed as far as the third round once, in 2021/22 when, after knocking out Wrexham and then upsetting League One Portsmouth away from home, they were beaten 4-0 by Championship Luton.
Up for grabs, in addition to a place in the second round, will be £45,000 in prize money, with the losers set to bank £15,000.