Mark Yates has challenged Crawley Town to put a smile on people’s faces by going on another memorable FA Cup run.

Reds have not reached the third round of the competition since they played Reading – then in the Premier League – three years ago having got to the fifth round in both the previous two seasons.

Crawley launch their bid to create another notable chapter in their FA Cup history today when they welcome fellow League Two side Luton Town to the Checkatrade.com Stadium in the first round.

Yates knows the uplifting affect a cup run can have on a club having led Cheltenham to third round meetings with Premier League opposition two years in a row.

Yates has no doubt the money generated by those knockout campaigns combined with the galvanising effect they had helped Cheltenham reach the League Two play-offs.

He said: “For clubs at our level if you target the third round it can bring many rewards. That is the aim as it can help the club in so many ways.

“You want to win as you know what it can do to your season. The supporters get excited. It is great for the fans and great for the players too as it keeps the winning run going and there is the potential of getting someone big in third round.

“But it is also nice for the people around the club as it creates a buzz and puts a smile on their face. A good cup run can really lift the whole club.

“There’s also the money side of it. If I am going in to see Michael (Dunford, chief executive) about a player I would have a bit of hope if we had got to the third round probably made a little bit more money than we had budgeted for.”

Before they can even begin to dream about a plum third round tie Crawley must first overcome a Luton side keen to avenge their 2-1 defeat at the Checkatrade.com Stadium in the league three weeks ago.

Yates added: “It’s tough but we have got to treat it like any other game. The lads know what is at stake but we want to continue the good run of form we are on (five wins in seven games).

“We can’t even talk about the third round as we are just concentrating on trying to beat a really tough Luton side. We managed to do that the other day which was great but that game could so easily have gone the other way.”