Chatham chairman Jeff Talbot has described the club’s best post-war FA Cup run as a financial lifeline.

Wins against Erith & Belvedere, East Preston, Whyteleafe and Horsham have fired the Chats to within 90 minutes of the first round proper and earned them £16,795 in prize money.

And after a summer which saw the Maidstone Road outfit kept in Ryman League, Division 1 North against their wishes, that cash boost could not have been more timely.

Long away trips to Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire push Chatham’s travel costs up and the loss of Kent derbies – which they would have in Division 1 South – mean their average attendances are down.

Mr Talbot said: “I’ve been talking about the cost of being placed in the North rather than the South. This probably goes towards wiping half of those costs away.

“It’s an absolute lifeline because we’re holding on by our fingertips here. This has really helped put us back on the map. We all aspire to this but we never expected it and didn’t plan for it.

“We don’t live off the cup money. The players deserve a cut and a little bit will be made available but the vast majority will go back into the club.”

Next weekend’s home tie against Southern League Premier Division side St Albans City will be Chatham’s first appearance in the FA Cup fourth qualifying round since 1931.

The club are producing a souvenir programme to mark the occasion and there is advertising space available in the centre pages for £25.