Gary Elphick was part of the Havant and Waterlooville squad that took on Liverpool at Anfield in the FA Cup.

Now he hopes a little bit of Cup magic will rub off on his Worthing players as they host AFC Hornchurch in the third qualifying round at Woodside Road today.

The Rebels go into the game unbeaten in six matches, including Tuesday’s penalty shootout win over St Neots Town in a second qualifying round replay.

Asked about his own FA Cup memories, Elphick, now player/joint-manager at Worthing, said: “Those two seasons at Havant. I was cup-tied for the Liverpool game but still went to Anfield. Then the following year we played Brentford.

“They are fantastic Cup memories and the highlight of my playing career. To be at Anfield and part of the squad was special. You can’t beat a Cup run for a non-league player.”

Worthing will be without Ben Pope (hamstring) while Callum Overton is cup-tied.

Hornchurch are currently second in Ryman north.

Elphick said: “We are on a great run at the moment but we have achieved nothing yet. We need to keep our feet on the ground.

“I played against Hornchurch with Lewes last year. They have two very dangerous strikers in George Purcell and David Knight who will need looking after.”