NEWPORT County AFC will earn more than £180,000 from the FA Cup before even reaching the third round – if they get past Grimsby Town and Maldon & Tiptree.

Next Wednesday’s first-round replay against Grimsby Town at Rodney Parade has will be shown live on BBC Wales, earning the Exiles a broadcast fee that is believed to be around £17,000.

If County beat the Mariners, they will also bank £36,000 from the FA prize fund and progress to the second round.

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The match at Maldon in Essex will be shown live on BBC Two, earning both clubs a £75,000 broadcast fee.

The winners would receive another £54,000 from the FA prize fund, meaning Michael Flynn’s men will have made just under £182,000 if they can beat Grimsby and Maldon.

And qualification for the third round for a third year in succession and the fourth time in five years would again give the Exiles the chance of drawing a Premier League giant in January.

The team managed by John Sheridan and Warren Feeney made it to round three in 2015-2016 thanks to wins over Brackley Town and Barnet before bowing out to Blackburn Rovers in front of the S4C cameras in January 2016.

Graham Westley’s side were denied a third-round trip to Anfield to take on Liverpool after losing a second-round replay to Plymouth Argyle in December 2016.

South Wales Argus:

But Westley’s successor Flynn has enjoyed remarkable success in the world’s oldest cup competition over the past two seasons.

Flynn’s men made it to round four in the 2017-2018 season thanks to wins over Walsall, Cambridge United and Leeds United.

They then took Tottenham Hotspur to a Wembley replay with England captain Harry Kane scoring a late equaliser live on BT Sport at Rodney Parade to cancel out Padraig Amond’s opener.

County were beaten 2-0 in the replay in February 2018, but they went one better last season with a thrilling run to the fifth round.

The Exiles beat Metropolitan Police and Wrexham before dumping former Premier League champions Leicester City out in round three live on BBC One in January.

They then grabbed a late leveller at Tony Pulis’ Middlesbrough before claiming a fantastic 2-0 home win in the replay live on BT Sport.

That set up a blockbuster home clash with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City megastars in February, with BT Sport again broadcasting the action live to the nation.

Amond was again on target (above), but City proved too strong and their 4-1 win set them on the road to victory in the final Wembley in May.

Operational chairman Gavin Foxall told the Argus earlier this year: “It’s not far off £2m that we’ve made from the FA Cup over the past two years and when you think that our turnover is about £2.2m then that’s not bad at all.

“There are obviously costs that go along with a cup run – in terms of putting the games on and putting up the new stands.

“All those things have got to be taken out before you get to your net figure, but it helps us enormously.”

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