FA Cup: Alfreton Town's ex-boxer Jake Day aiming for second-round knockout against Walsall
- Published
Jake Day celebrated on the pitch with his daughter after Alfreton Town reached the second round of the FA Cup
FA Cup second round on the BBC: Alfreton Town v Walsall |
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Date: Saturday, 2 December Venue: Impact Arena Kick-off: 12:30 GMT |
Coverage: Watch live on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website & app (build-up starts at 12:15) |
Weighing in at 15st 4lbs (98kg) and standing 6ft 4in tall, Jake Day cuts an imposing figure up front for Alfreton Town.
As a teenager, Day spent most of his free time in boxing gyms, taking part in amateur fights.
On Saturday, the striker will look to deliver an FA Cup second-round knockout when non-league Alfreton entertain League Two Walsall in front of the live BBC One cameras.
The Derbyshire part-timers, who play in the sixth-tier National League North, have never reached the third round of the FA Cup, when Premier League clubs enter the competition.
"Before this season I hadn't been past the second or third qualifying rounds," said Day, who earned the nickname 'Beast from the East' after scoring 85 times in 107 appearances for his East Yorkshire home town side, Bridlington Town.
"To think we could face a potential tie with a Premier League club if we win our next match, it's the stuff of dreams."
Day, 31, said taking up boxing at the age of 11 helped him discover the importance of self-discipline before he switched his attention to football in his 20s.
"I had some amateur bouts. I was never good enough to turn professional. It was a hobby more than anything else."
Day joined Bridlington, then managed by former Premier League midfielder and British boxing champion Curtis Woodhouse, in 2017 after being spotted playing "pub football".
Six years and numerous clubs later and the construction worker is in his second spell at Alfreton, where he is trying to keep his feet on the ground.
"We've tried not to speak about the FA Cup since the first round because we've had a lot of league and cup games," added Day. "It's not been easy.
"The FA Cup is all about dreaming. We're a part-time team, live on national television, in a game where a win could earn you a crack against someone from the Premier League.
"But we're trying not to get ahead of ourselves. Walsall is a big, big game and it will be very difficult. They'll want to reach the third round as much as we do.
"It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many of us."
Jake Day in the boxing gym as he gets ready to face Walsall in the FA Cup
The foster carer plotting an FA Cup upset
Alfreton are enjoying their best FA Cup run since 2012-13, the same season they signed 18-year-old goalkeeper Jordan Pickford on loan from Sunderland, four years before he made his England debut.
Pickford played 12 matches in the Conference Premier, but Alfreton have since been relegated, making their appearance in the second round of the FA Cup an impressive achievement for boss Billy Heath.
Heath, 51, has been in charge since 2018 and juggles his role as manager with being a foster carer.
As well as being parents to their own four children, Heath and his wife Toni are currently foster carers to three young children.
"I come from a big family - two brothers and two sisters with lots of children," he told BBC Sport.
"Thirteen years ago I asked my wife if she fancied getting involved in being a foster carer and here we are still doing it.
"We've had 33 children in the last 13 years. You're looking after them until a forever family comes along.
"It's really rewarding but it can be horrendous as well because each time a child moves on they take a little piece of you with them.
"Right now, we're foster carers to three children under the age of three. Before our win in the last round of the FA Cup against Worthing, I was feeding one of the little ones at three in the morning.
"I would recommend it [foster caring]. It's difficult and challenging but my wife and I are still enjoying it and we'll continue to do it as long as we can.
"You have to give everything to it - a bit like football really."
‘The romance of the Cup is always there’
Alfreton are looking to reach the third round for the first time - but Heath, a former player for the club, is not getting carried away.
"It's massively important that we go into the game with no fear. We're huge underdogs," he added.
"The odds are against us. The main thing is we perform on the day and make it very difficult for Walsall."