BRANTHAM Athletic have secured a plum FA Vase tie after winning their third-round encounter at Brightlingsea Regent.

Tony Hall’s Thurlow Nunn League premier division high-fliers won 3-2, to book their place in Monday’s draw.

And when their name came out of the hat, they were duly rewarded with a home tie against four-time winners Whitley Bay.

The north-east club won the competition in 2002 (beating Tiptree United in the final), 2009, 2010 and 2011 and currently sit fifth in the Northern League.

“Whitley Bay have got a great history in this competition, so it’ll be a very tough tie,” said Hall, looking ahead to the fourth-round contest on January 19.

“But all we wanted was a home draw, so we were happy.

“It’s a match we’ll very much look forward to.”

For the full story, see this week's Standard.