The game at the eighth-tier side will be shown live on TNT Sports

Grimsby Town’s FA Cup first-round tie away at eighth-tier side Stafford Rangers has been selected for national TV coverage, as the Mariners look to avoid an upset.

The game has been moved to a 12pm kick-off on Sunday, November 8, due to the TV selection, with the match to be shown live in the UK on TNT Sports.

Graham Deakin’s men reached the first round for the first time in 20 years with a thumping 5-0 replay victory over National League Gateshead on Tuesday.

Their reward is a draw with the League Two Mariners, who play four divisions above them and were the talk of the nation for their own cup exploits last term, defeating Manchester United in the Carabao Cup.

Town also made the quarter-finals of the FA Cup in a record-breaking run just three-and-a-half years ago, so they carry some recent pedigree in this competition that would make a win over them even sweeter for Stafford.

As one of just two eighth-tier sides to make it to the first round proper this term, alongside AFC Rushden and Diamonds, Rangers have had a run to remember already, but they will be out for blood when Town arrive in a couple of weeks.

After his side’s replay victory, Deakin said: “It just gives you a hunger now to go and win the next one as well. I am very proud. Very proud of that group of players and proud of the football club for what they’ve done.

“I felt a little bit disappointed that we never got it over the line last Saturday. That fuelled me and fuelled the lads to go and put it right. They delivered an unbelievable performance.

“It’s the first time in over 20 years that we’ve got to the first round proper, and it was one of the objectives at the start of the season to get there, and it fills me with immense pride over what this group of players have done.

“You always want to be the best you can be in football, and we’ve ticked one objective, but now I have the fuel in me to hopefully do a job on Grimsby!”

The TV selection will bring a five-figure windfall for the clubs, and the prize money offered in the FA Cup is a great motivator for clubs at Town’s level, let alone Stafford’s.

The winning prize money and gate receipts will bring the total income from the game to six figures, with Stafford looking at ways to increase their ground’s capacity to make the most of the occasion.

There are personal stakes in the game for Town’s assistant head coach, Tom Culshaw, but he wants the Mariners to be cold and clinical in their pursuit of FA Cup progression.

The Mariners assistant boss explained: “I know their manager very well, he’s a friend of mine, so he was on the phone to me all excited once they had got through, knowing that they would be playing against us.

“It was a fantastic result that they got in the last round, so I have to congratulate him on that. I’m looking forward to the game on a personal level, but the club's progression is paramount because it is a massively important competition.

“We want to go there and win and be in the next round of the cup, so that’s what we’ll be focused on doing when that game comes around.”