SWINDON Supermarine have been drawn at home to fellow Southern League Premier South side Harrow Borough in the FA Trophy third round.

Lee Spalding’s men provided arguably the shock of the second round on Saturday after a hat-trick from George Dowling and a solo effort from Zack Kotwica helped Marine dispatch National League South club Dartford 4-0 at the Webbswood Stadium.

As a result of the convincing success, Marine will welcome 16th-place Harrow to Wiltshire on Saturday, December 17 – the same day that Swindon Town travel to Barrow in League Two.

After expressing his relief over Marine avoiding an away trip to a big-hitting National League club, Spalding shared his feeling on the confirmed tie.

He said: “Firstly, we’re delighted to have a home draw. But both clubs will be pleased with the draw.

“We’re delighted with it, because if we turn up and perform at the level we know we can do – and we did against Dartford on Saturday – we’ll give ourselves a great opportunity to progress in a fantastic competition. We want to be in this for as long as we can be.

“We played Harrow earlier in the season, they’re a good side, and they’ve improved a lot since the start of the season.

“I’m sure they’ll be excited by the prospect of playing us, so for both clubs it’s a great opportunity. But we’re at home, and we’ve got to fancy our chances.”

Those who watched the Spitfires at the weekend were delighted with what they had witnessed as a shell-shocked Dartford were beaten by two home goals either side of half-time.

Spalding was pleased to see his team stand up to the pressure of facing a higher-ranked team and shared some pre-match words which he believed helped Marine successfully complete their task.

Spalding said: “We spoke about our cup history, and when we’ve played National League South teams in the past we’ve always come up short.

“I said to the players before the game, I think a little bit of it is about belief and actually thinking we’re capable of going out there and getting a result.

“I think our belief was quite evident in the game, and an early goal or two helps, but I think there was a belief throughout the team.

“And to do it against a Dartford side who are at the top end of their league and looking for promotion was excellent.”