James Montgomery keen to make his own Telford history

But Telford goalkeeper James Montgomery is determined to make his own history in the famous cup competition, starting with victory against Worcester City tonight.

Montgomery is a relative of former Sunderland goalkeeper Jim Montgomery – who played in goal for Sunderland when they won the competition in 1973. Jim was the cousin of James's grandfather.

And the 22-year-old admits it's an honour to be associated with the Sunderland great.

"My grandad's cousin played in the 73 cup final," he said.

"He is well remembered for his saves and is the club's record appearance holder.

"He is a legend up there, so highly regarded. To share his name is quite nice but there does come a little bit of pressure at times.

"I knew the stories from a young age. It is still talked about now. I think every kid in Sunderland knows about him, knows who he is. Everyone respects him. It is part of Sunderland's history.

"It really is massive but it's nice to be associated with him. He is such a big figure."

Tonight's game sees Telford lock horns with Worcester once again after the two-sides played out a 0-0 draw on Saturday.

Montgomery is one of the main reasons the second qualifying round clash headed into a replay following an outstanding display between the sticks at the Victoria Ground.

Now, with the benefit of home advantage, the keeper expects his side to make it through to the next round.

"I thought Saturday could have gone either way," he said.

"We are still in the competition – that is the main thing and now we go again. Tonight we will have the fans and that will be a bonus.

"They travelled well but they are always a bonus being at home.

"I think tonight's game will be a different test. They might see how we lined up on Saturday and try to match us in another way. I think it will be a very different game but we are determined to get through.

"Every game is massive but this is the FA Cup and the history speaks for itself.

"Last season we got knocked out at this stage. This season we are still in it. I just want to get through and see how far we can go."

The Bucks experimented with a new 3-5-2 formation on Saturday, with Rob Smith switching systems following an indifferent start to the National League North campaign.

It's a formation the boss is expected to stick with tonight – with Montgomery believing it suits his side.

"I thought it worked well," he continued. "It was a tough ask keeping their two strikers out.

"There is plenty of experience up front for them so to keep them out with the new system is massive.

"We were doing well as a four or five but the last couple of games it had not worked for us.

"But on Saturday we changed and kept the clean sheet. We need to build on that, build on being a hard team to beat. Hopefully we will start scoring a few more and be better as a team."

One of Worcester's strikers is former Albion forward Lee Hughes and Montgomery admits it's vital Telford keep him quite.

"He is a very strong lad, deceptive and hard to deal with," he added.

"But it's good to test yourself against someone who has done well in the pro game."