Eastleigh chairman Roger Sherwood aims to come back from Gosport Borough tomorrow with a full stomach, a bulging wallet and a silly grin on his face.

Not only would victory at Privett Park guarantee the club a tidy £2,250 payout from the FA prize fund, but Sherwood would dine out on a champagne meal at the expense of his good buddy Mick Marsh, the Gosport manager.

He smiled: "The loser always has to buy dinner when we play each other and, so far, Eastleigh are well in front.

"Hopefully I'll come home legless in the early hours of the morning - at Mick's expense!"

Gosport will always hold a special place in Sherwood's heart - and not just because of his friendship with Marsh.

He spent two happy seasons in charge at Privett Park just over a decade ago, leading Borough to their sole League Cup success in 1992/93.

Sherwood confessed: "I loved my time at Gosport. They're nice people who are passionate about their football. The only thing I didn't like was the travelling.

"I'd sometimes leave home in Southampton and take one and a half hours to drive down there. That's too much for me. I prefer being ten or 15 minutes from the ground."

Originally Sherwood considered packing up management after leaving Gosport, but his old club Eastleigh tugged at his heartstrings and he returned to Ten Acres as team boss.

These days he leaves that job in the capable hands of Paul Doswell and is happy working behind the scenes, turning Eastleigh into one of the area's most upwardly mobile clubs.

Gosport, too, are thriving at the top of the Sydenhams Wessex League - a fact which comes as no surprise to Sherwood.

He said: "Mick was running the reserves when I was manager at Gosport and we've got a lot of respect for each other football-wise. He's got a very good eye for a player and, although he didn't take over from me, I did suggest he was the man for the job when I left there."

Marsh has missed Gosport's last two games while holidaying in Spain, but wild horses couldn't keep him away from tomorrow's first qualifying round clash.

His assistant Gary Lee laughed: "Mick wouldn't miss this one. He'd love to put one over on Eastleigh, but we know we'll have to be at our best and give them the respect they deserve. It'll be tough, but who knows?"

Gosport were missing five players for Tuesday's slender 1-0 win over Cowes. Perry Holland is out with broken ribs, but Ian Rew (shoulder), Stuart Hensman (knee cartilage), Neil Scammell (bruised foot) and Mark Tryon (calf) are all in with a chance of playing.

Eastleigh are able to name an unchanged side for the first time all season, but it will be the last game for a month for striker Andy Forbes, who will have his troublesome calves operated on next week. Nicky Banger returns from suspension and injury.

Transfer-listed midfielder Neil Davis is now a free agent having had his contract cancelled and 17-year-old Robbie Chamberlain has left because he's not a first-team regular. The teenager is believed to be talking to Basingstoke Town.

Reserve goalkeeper Wayne Shaw has joined Wessex outfit Hamworthy United on loan to cover for broken arm victim Tom Hawkins.