Dover Athletic boss Jake Leberl is hoping his club will be the next to enjoy the FA Cup limelight.

Whites have been handed a home tie against National League Wealdstone on the weekend of November 7 after reaching the first round for the first time since 2019.

Non-league teams are no strangers to record-breaking runs in the competition. Maidstone reached the last 16 in 2023/24 and Boreham Wood also reached round five in 2021/22.

“You always get jealous of teams that have a great FA Cup run,” said Leberl.

“I remember Maidstone a couple of years ago with their unbelievable cup run, it just galvanised the whole town, didn’t it?

“There’s always one team that comes from below and has a really good run. Boreham Wood have had some unbelievable FA Cup runs of late.

“I think it would be fitting if we could be the next club to do that.

“I think the fans deserve it for the hard times they’ve been through. The chairman definitely deserves it and the new people coming in.

“It’s a good place at the minute and long may it continue.”

Leberl was assistant manager when Dover reached the third round and hosted Crystal Palace in 2014/15.

But this isn’t about personal gain for the now Dover boss.

“I don’t even think about it personally,” added Leberl. “This is my club, isn’t it?

“I didn’t actually come back here to be manager of the football club. It’s just circumstantial how it happened. It’s been a little bit surreal.

“That first season was so difficult when we were relegated at Christmas. Then I just felt that I was going to copy the best managers that I’ve been about.

“I’ve played for some brilliant managers and I’ve had a lot of success. We went down that route of young, hungry players and we’ve just carried it forward.

“Obviously, getting promotion out of Step 3 in the first season was a real proud moment with a great group of boys.

“Last season, obviously, the target was always to stay up but I was a little bit disappointed in how it petered out. We had a few issues with things going on and it wasn’t overly enjoyable.

“But this year, we’ve been fortunate enough to sign some really good players. Again, young boys that are desperate to do well and progress their careers.

“We’ve got a lot more quality this year than we did last year, but we’ve also got that team spirit and the group is a really good group that all want to do well.

“They want to do well for the management, themselves, the football club and their teammates.

“It’s about time we had a good run in the FA Cup because since I’ve been here, as a manager, we haven’t. I’ve had, obviously, great times as assistant with Chris [Kinnear]. When we played Crystal Palace here that was a special day for everyone.”

Dover return to league action on Saturday with a trip to third-placed Salisbury before hosting unbeaten draw specialists Chelmsford on Tuesday night.

Having finished only three points above Dover last season it’s been a remarkable turnaround for Salisbury and their manager Brian Dutton.

“We’re in a good place and we’ll have to do our homework on them,” said Leberl. “They’re on a great run. I know the manager as I’ve played against him quite a few times. He’s a really good guy and was under a bit of pressure last year but they stuck with him.

“So many managers lose their jobs on a poor run, but they gave him extra time and he’s doing an amazing job.

“Then obviously Chelmsford, with all their resources, are still unbeaten and they’re only going to get stronger and stronger. We’ve got two really difficult games coming up.”