Sheppey United manager Ernie Batten has dashed back from a family holiday for his side's monstrous FA Cup tie.

He's now dreaming of upsetting the odds by making it past League Two Walsall in front of the ITV television cameras. Eighth-tier Sheppey are the lowest ranked team left in the competition but have no fears of facing their EFL opposition.

Manager Batten, who returned for his second spell as boss in the summer, is so relaxed he missed the previous two league encounters to head to Thailand on holiday.

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"This was a trip I planned a long time ago with my family and I couldn't cancel," Batten said.

"All the years I was manager, I don't think I ever missed a match or a training session… Football absorbs you, it just takes over your life. But this, I couldn't let the family down.

"In actual fact, I would have missed the FA Cup, but I'm coming back earlier, coming back a few days prior to be at the last training session prior to the cup game on the Friday."

Sheppey have played just six Isthmian League South East matches this season given their FA Cup success.

They started their Cup run on August 19 with a win over Midhurst & Easebourne and have also seen off Kennington, Burgess Hill Town, Merthyr Town, and Billericay Town on their way to the first round.

It’s the first time the club, who were founded in 1890, have ever reached the ‘proper’ rounds of the competition. And even though they face EFL opposition, Batten is confident the journey isn’t going to end tonight.

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“We certainly don't want the run to end,” he added. “We're on the TV and we all know the magic of the FA Cup.

“The confidence is flying. I am confident. I think we can pull it off. I think we've got a very good chance. We're good at home.

“We'll have a very passionate 1500 people. The ground is very compact. You're basically right on the touchline, fans will be packed in there.”

Batten took Sheppey into Step 4 of the non-league pyramid in 2022 before stepping into a director of football role that same year.

A year after moving upstairs, he was brought back down following the departure of ex-Wimbledon and Oxford United striker Jack Midson. And while his team may be part-time, Batten admits running the club takes up plenty of his time.

"I ran a business on the Isle of Sheppey for many, many years and I'm semi-retired now," he said. "I need to, to be fully involved as a manager, I would say I'm just about full time because of the effort that that goes into it.

"And, for the amount of time you put in, you feel like you could be running Manchester United.

"And I think, I think every manager who aspires to be successful will tell you the same story. It's a non-stop job and, and you'll put the same effort in as if you was running the Premier League Cup as if you run a little, smaller non league club."

It’s a family affair at Sheppey with Batten’s daughter Emma, who was on holiday in Thailand with her dad, a major shareholder at the club.

Ernie’s sons George and Ian are also involved in football, managing K Sports in the Southern Counties East League Division One.

And having grown up as a Sunderland fan watching the Black Cats beat Leeds in the 1973 Cup final, Batten admits tonight’s clash and this season’s run is his fondest football memory.

“I think obviously from a personal point of view, the thrill of doing, you know, getting where we have this season in the FA Cup is fantastic.,” he added.

“Certainly a highlight for me has been, you know, the 130 years of history and this is the first time they've ever done it. So it has to be really special.”

But Sheppey don’t want it to end just yet and hope it’s them in the saddle for round two over Walsall.

Watch Sheppey United vs Walsall in the FA Cup live on ITV4 tonight

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