Whitehawk manager Jude Macdonald says the FA Cup is important for the club, but not a priority.

Hawks begin their season tomorrow in qualifying when they travel to Ashford.

The club have had FA cup runs in the past including in the 2015-16 season, when they reached the second round before losing 3-2 to Dagenham and Redbridge in a replay.

However, even with Covid-19 and the effect it has had on non-league clubs financially, Macdonald says the cup is not his side’s main concern.

He said: “It is important, but it is not the priority.

“We want to try and prioritise the league because we are not going to win the FA Cup.

“However, any sort of money coming into the club will be huge.

“Also it is exciting we have got players in the squad who have been involved in cup runs before, people like Dave Martin who was involved in the last cup run at the club.

“People like that want to be involved, they know what it is like and hopefully they will be able to share their experiences with some of the younger players in the squad.”

The Hawks have so far brought in ex-Albion defender Adam El-Abd as player/assistant and Macdonald is hoping to add another couple of players to his squad.

He said: “Adam and I were talking on Sunday and we need two more I would say within the squad.

“We are deliberately going with a smaller squad this year, with as much quality as last year which I think we have.

“Adam was an incredible signing. We were really lucky that he was making the step to come out of professional football this year.”