FA Cup Qualifying
Football Intelligence
All 26 English FA Cup First Qualifying Round replays today, ranked from highest to lowest Football Intelligence Score.
Highest-to-lowest rankings
| # | Fixture | Original tie | Context leader | FIS | Opponent | Delta | Provisional lean | Uncertainty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Warrington Town v Shildon | 2-2 | Warrington | 64.5 | 50.5 | +14.0 | Warrington qualify | Medium |
| 2 | Worcester City v Knowle | 1-1 | Worcester | 63.0 | 48.0 | +15.0 | Worcester qualify | Medium-high |
| 3 | Portishead Town v Wimborne Town | 0-0 | Portishead | 62.5 | 54.0 | +8.5 | Portishead competitive / underdog chance | High |
| 4 | Mangotsfield United v Gloucester City | 1-1 | Mangotsfield | 62.0 | 53.0 | +9.0 | Mangotsfield competitive | High |
| 5 | Tadcaster Albion v Lancaster City | 1-1 | Tadcaster | 61.5 | 54.0 | +7.5 | Tadcaster double chance in 90 mins | Medium-high |
| 6 | Hashtag United v St Albans City | 0-0 | Hashtag | 61.0 | 55.5 | +5.5 | Low-scoring / Hashtag competitive | High |
| 7 | Kettering Town v Wellingborough Town | 2-2 | Kettering | 60.5 | 53.5 | +7.0 | Kettering qualify | Medium |
| 8 | Barton Town v North Ferriby | 0-0 | Barton | 60.5 | 55.0 | +5.5 | Tight; Barton competitive | High |
| 9 | Leiston v Grays Athletic | 0-0 | Leiston | 60.0 | 52.5 | +7.5 | Leiston qualify | Medium |
| 10 | Hitchin Town v Biggleswade Town | 1-1 | Hitchin | 59.8 | 53.0 | +6.8 | Hitchin qualify | Medium |
| 11 | Brentwood Town v Concord Rangers | 0-0 | Brentwood | 59.5 | 53.0 | +6.5 | Brentwood qualify | Medium |
| 12 | Welling United v Faversham Town | 1-1 | Welling | 59.0 | 53.0 | +6.0 | Welling qualify | Medium |
| 13 | Dartford v Westfield | 1-1 | Dartford | 58.9 | 52.5 | +6.4 | Dartford qualify | Medium |
| 14 | AFC Stoneham v Basingstoke Town | 0-0 | Basingstoke | 58.8 | 54.0 | +4.8 | Basingstoke slight qualification lean | High |
| 15 | Felixstowe & Walton v Wingate & Finchley | 0-0 | Wingate | 58.3 | 55.0 | +3.3 | Wingate slight qualification lean | High |
| 16 | Havant & Waterlooville v Chippenham | 1-1 | Havant | 57.5 | 54.5 | +3.0 | Havant slight home lean | High |
| 17 | Needham Market v Stanway Rovers | 0-0 | Needham | 57.2 | 52.5 | +4.7 | Needham slight lean | High |
| 18 | Guiseley v Stockton Town | 2-2 | Guiseley | 57.0 | 55.0 | +2.0 | Guiseley slight home lean | High |
| 19 | Cray Wanderers v Lewes | 2-2 | Cray | 56.8 | 55.0 | +1.8 | Near-even; goals plausible | High |
| 20 | Newmarket Town v Canvey Island | 1-1 | Canvey | 56.5 | 54.5 | +2.0 | Canvey slight lean | High |
| 21 | Fakenham Town v Ware | 3-3 | Ware | 56.3 | 54.5 | +1.8 | Goals / Ware slight lean | High |
| 22 | Boldmere St Michaels v Bourne Town | 1-1 | Boldmere | 56.0 | 54.0 | +2.0 | Boldmere slight home lean | High |
| 23 | Prestwich Heys v South Liverpool | 2-2 | Prestwich | 55.8 | 54.5 | +1.3 | Near-even; home edge only | High |
| 24 | Buckhurst Hill v Yaxley | 1-1 | Buckhurst | 55.5 | 53.5 | +2.0 | Buckhurst slight lean | High |
| 25 | Pagham v Ascot United | 1-1 | Ascot | 55.3 | 54.5 | +0.8 | Near-even; Ascot tier edge | High |
| 26 | Jersey Bulls v Burgess Hill Town* | 0-0 | Burgess Hill | 55.0 | 52.0 | +3.0 | Burgess Hill slight lean | High |
*Played at Burgess Hill Town, removing Jersey Bulls’ normal home advantage. “Qualify” includes extra time and penalties. The score ranks contextual evidence, not permanent team strength.
Strongest contextual cases
1. Warrington Town – FIS 64.5
Warrington recovered from behind to draw 2-2 away and now return home with a two-tier advantage. Manager Paul Carden says the first meeting clarified Shildon’s attacking strengths.
Risk: Reece Daly is suspended, Ben Elliott requires assessment, and Shildon have scored heavily this season.
2. Worcester City – FIS 63.0
Worcester move from an away 1-1 draw to a home replay and operate two tiers above Knowle. Home setting and structural depth create the day’s clearest baseline-context combination.
Risk: Knowle already showed they can neutralise the tier gap.
3. Portishead Town – FIS 62.5
Tier-nine Portishead held tier-seven Wimborne 0-0 away and now gain home conditions. That is meaningful evidence of tactical resistance and creates a live upset mechanism.
Risk: Wimborne’s two-tier quality advantage remains relevant; public team news is thin.
4. Mangotsfield United – FIS 62.0
Mangotsfield, two tiers below Gloucester, earned a 1-1 draw away and now host the replay. The venue reversal and demonstrated competitiveness lift their contextual score.
Risk: Gloucester’s deeper baseline quality may assert itself over another 90 or 120 minutes.
5. Tadcaster Albion – FIS 61.5
Tadcaster held tier-seven Lancaster 1-1 away after a strong goalkeeping display and now return home. Lancaster’s own report described the original performance as laboured.
Risk: Tadcaster were reliant on goalkeeper Harry Stead and Lancaster created enough pressure to lead.
6. Hashtag United – FIS 61.0
Hashtag held higher-tier St Albans to 0-0 away. The home replay creates a plausible low-scoring upset route, but the score is driven mostly by the first-leg evidence.
Risk: A single contextual factor dominates and St Albans retain the stronger underlying tier baseline.
Method and limitations
The Strategy 5 weights are: Stakes 18%, Availability 22%, Recovery/travel 15%, Tactical fit 15%, Club environment 10%, Information integrity 10%, and Market intelligence 10%. Every team starts at neutral (50). Ratings change only where current evidence supports a positive or adverse mechanism.
For these non-league replays, the main verified inputs are the first-match result, home/away reversal, league tier, official club reporting and any confirmed availability. Thin team news prevents extreme ratings. Most matches should therefore remain paper-test or further-research cases.
Sources
- The Football Association – FA Cup fixtures
- 2026-27 FA Cup qualifying rounds – fixtures, tiers and original scores
- Warrington Town – official Shildon replay preview and team news
- Lancaster City – official 1-1 Tadcaster match report
- Chippenham Town – official Havant replay confirmation
- Kentish Football – regional replay schedule