While risking sycophancy, it seems fitting to tribute this post to therealfacup. Not so long ago, I had little interest in the Cup's First Round or anything that preceded it. My focus was on Plymouth Argyle, its status as a Championship club and not a lot else. If asked whether I was a fan of football or Argyle, then my answer was a depressingly parochial one.

There is a lot of money flying about in the Blue Square South this season as the teams jostle to fill the void at the top left by Braintree Town and Ebbsfleet United. The gap between those with a decent budget and those without seems to be growing a bit more in the southern half of Step 2 than in the northern half.