Roofing entertain Bishop Auckland in a Preliminary Round tie – and it has evoked memories of one of the most famous spells in the club's history.

It is only three years ago that McLoughlin guided Roofing to within one step of the final after a fantastic run to the last four of the competition.

And while he was happy that his side went out of the FA Cup in midweek, the Roofers manager admits he would love another run in the Vase.

Roofing lost 2-1 to Bridlington Town on Tuesday night, with McLoughlin claiming: "We're not going to win the FA Cup, so I'm not too bothered about going out.

"There's too many competitions, so going out of that one wasn't a major disappointment."

It's a different story when it comes to the FA Vase, however.

McLoughlin admitted: "We would like to progress to the next round.

"The FA Vase is a more realistic competition for sides like us.

"It's some three years ago since we got to the semi-finals. It got us noticed on the footballing map, and got us good publicity.

"I like the Vase, it will always be a bit special to me.

"We're playing well, but we still haven't totally gelled. We're still getting to know some of the players."

Roofing beat Bishop Auckland 2-1 at home back in February – one of the few highlights of a terrible season which saw them relegated from Division One.

Bishops were lucky to survive themselves, only being handed a reprieve after finishing third-bottom because Durham City chose to leave the Northern League for the UniBond.

McLoughlin added: "Bishops will be a hard game, but we're as good as a lot of teams in the First Division."

Roofing are without the influential Paul Hodgson, who has ligament damage to his ankle, and Craig Tate is still suspended, but Paul Catto returns from holiday, and Ryan Jenkins and Richard Paxton – who both missed the midweek game through work – are also available.