Village football club prepares for 'biggest match'

The club is expecting more than 1,000 supporters to attend Saturday's game

A village football club is preparing for the "biggest game" in its history.

Gloucestershire's Bishops Cleeve FC play in the eighth tier of English football and face Torquay United on Saturday in the second qualifying round of the FA Cup.

The semi-professional side sits two steps above Bishops Cleeve on the football pyramid. It is expected the game will attract the biggest crowd ever seen at the club's ground on Kayte Lane, Bishops Cleeve.

Captain Ross Langworthy said: "Fingers crossed we can give the big crowd something to cheer for."

About 1,300 fans are expected to descend on the ground, more than five times the number they get for an average game.

Manager Paul Collicutt, who also works as a meat wholesaler, has been passionate about football all his life.

"When I was eight or nine years of age I lived in Pecked Lane in Cleeve and I used to push bike down to watch Cleeve play," Mr Collicutt said.

Manager of the club Paul Collicutt (pictured) has been putting up posters in the village to drum up support.

He added it was a "dream come true" for his club.

"To go and pull the team that everybody wanted to play in Torquay United it speaks volumes," he said.

Volunteers have helped put up a gazebo for the expected increase in spectators, with around half the tickets being sold on the first day.

Goalkeeper Lewis Clayton has been at the club for three years but also played as a junior when his dad was a manager.

"It's a massive occasion for the club.

"It's a pinch yourself moment. To draw the big boys, it's a good feeling," he added.

The match will kick off at 15:00 BST on Saturday.